Clancy Tucker's Blog, page 63

18 January 2021 - HALLSTATT - A PLACE WORTH VISITING

HALLSTATT

- A PLACE WORTH VISITING -

G'day folks,

Hallstatt is a village on Lake Hallstatt's western shore in Austria's mountainous Salzkammergut region.

Its 16th-century Alpine houses and alleyways are home to cafes and shops. A funicular railway connects to Salzwelten, an ancient salt mine with a subterranean salt lake, and to Skywalk Hallstatt viewing platform. A trail leads to the Echern Valley glacier garden with glacial potholes and Waldbachstrub Waterfall.

Now, check it out ...

Clancy's comment: Wow. Certainly worth a visit.

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Published on December 13, 2020 17:24

8 January 2021 - AWESOME BAGAN - UNESCO WORLD HERITAGE SITE

AWESOME BAGAN

- UNESCO WORLD HERITAGE SITE -

G'day folks,

Bagan is an ancient city and a UNESCO World Heritage Site in the Mandalay Region of Myanmar.

From the 9th to 13th centuries, the city was the capital of the Pagan Kingdom, the first kingdom that unified the regions that would later constitute Myanmar.

Myanmar is perhaps a troubled country, but it’s inhabited by some of the kindest, most gentle people you’ll ever meet. There are beautiful and fascinating places to visit, and the crown of all is the amazing Bagan, an ancient city of 2200+ Buddhist temples, pagodas, and stupas. A millennium ago, during the height of the Pagan Dynasty, this was the largest city on the planet with well over 2 million people living and trading between the 10.000+ temples!

Now, check out some photographs of this enchanting place.

Clancy's comment: Trust me. It's worth a visit. The people are amazingly friendly.

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Published on December 13, 2020 17:02

17 January 2021 - AMAZING SURVIVAL FROM FROZEN RIVER

AMAZING SURVIVAL FROM

FROZEN RIVER

G'day folks,

Welcome to another story of survival.

In May 2000, Dr. Anna Bagenholm, 29, was skiing on a familiar trail outside Narvik, Norway, when she lost control and fell headfirst into an icy river. Her head and body became stuck under thick ice, but she managed to find an air pocket so that she could continue to breathe. After 40 minutes of trying to free herself, the exhausted woman was in the throes of hypothermia. Her companions found her, but it took them another 40 minutes to break the ice and drag her out of the freezing water. By this time, her body temperature had dropped to just 57 degrees Fahrenheit, and her vital signs were so low that she was clinically dead. Thankfully, emergency doctors managed to revive her by pumping her blood through a special machine that warmed it. After several months of rehabilitation, she was back to her normal health, except for a persistent tingling sensation in her hands. This case led to the development of therapeutic hypothermia as a protective procedure for some epileptic and stroke patients.

Clancy's comment: Now, that's almost unbelievable.
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Published on December 07, 2020 15:37

3 January 2021 - THAILAND'S FLOATING MARKETS - A MUST SEE EXPERIENCE

THAILAND'S FLOATING MARKETS

- A MUST SEE EXPERIENCE -

G'day folks,

As someone who has spent a long time in South East Asia, I highly suggest that anyone visit the floating markets if you are visiting.

One might feel as though they are entering a different world upon visiting a Thai floating market. Slender canals are crammed with boats selling an abundance of food and goods, while friendly vendors talk amongst themselves in Thai. While some countries in Asia have their own floating markets, none compare to Thailand’s, and the surreal experience is one you cannot miss while visiting the country.

Floating markets are mainly found in Thailand, Indonesia and Vietnam. Floating markets today are essentially tourist traps, with alluring food and souvenirs. They did not always use to be this way, however. The Chao Phraya River that weaves through Bangkok is often referred to as the artery of the city. The water was a way a life for people in Thailand, making it possible for them to travel and sell their goods. Before urban Bangkok was developed, the city was a jungle, making it almost impossible for vendors and sellers alike to make any money off their goods. These goods were sold both regionally and internationally on these waterways. Even when Thai people saw the creation of roads and different means of transportation throughout the city, the canals remained a popular means of trade. This is the case for waterways throughout Thailand.

There are many floating markets in Bangkok, and the most popular one is the Damnoen Saduak Floating Market. This market is usually bursting with tourists, which is never a good thing. Regardless, the Damnoen Saduak Floating Market definitely deserves a spot on your travel itinerary. The market is about an hour outside of Bangkok. You can book a tour to visit and explore the market for an entire day. You will want to arrive early, as the bulk of people start to show up at around 9am. Arriving at 7am is ideal. Most tour itineraries include transfer to and from your accommodation. Some even include long-tail boat rides down the canals where the floating market is. It is a great way to see the winding canals you would not otherwise have access to on foot, including remote villages and plantations.

Clancy's comment: Yep, definitely a great experience for photographers as well.

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Published on December 05, 2020 16:03

7 January 2021 - YOUNG GIRL'S ESCAPE FROM ALLIGATOR

YOUNG GIRL'S ESCAPE

FROM ALLIGATOR

G'day folks,

Here is another amazing escape story.

In 2017, a ten-year-old from Florida sat on the shore of a lake in Orange County. However, Juliana’s relaxing excursion quickly came to a halt when her leg was grabbed by a 2.7-meter alligator. At first, the girl punched the beast in the face, but her attempt to get it to loosen its grip did not work. Then, she remembered a tip she had learned at Gatorland, an alligator theme park.

She jammed her fingers into the animal’s nose and waited for it to run out of air, so it had to open its mouth. After the gator let her go, the girl managed to get away. Her family took her to the hospital where she received several stitches for the deep puncture wounds in her legs. Other than that, she was fine. Luckily Juliana remained calm in this situation, otherwise, the end result was certain death.

Clancy's comment: Ouch!

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Published on November 27, 2020 14:27

25 November 2020 - ABANDONED MOVIE THEATRE IN BRUSSELS, BELGIUM

ABANDONED MOVIE THEATRE IN BRUSSELS, BELGIUM

G'day folks,

Again, I've discovered another abandoned building with class. Aegidium is a stunning abandoned movie theatre hidden in plain sight on a busy street in Brussels, Belgium.

From the outside, you would not expect that there are multiple rooms with a total size of 3,260 m² located behind the small door. A mix of Art Nouveau and Art Deco elements is found throughout the building. However, the main room (movie theater) is designed in a beautiful Moorish style by architect Léon Denis.

The building was constructed in 1906 and opened its doors under the name “Diamant Palace.” The main purpose of the building was to host parties. After the owner died, the building was sold and renamed to “Panthéon-Palace.” The Panthéon-Palace was well known for some of the best dancing nights. Eventually, in 1929, the building changed owners again and was named “Aegidium.” Aegidium refers to the patron saint of Saint-Gilles. Saint-Gilles is the name of the district that Aegidium is located in.

Multiple renovation works took place in 1933. This led to the new purpose of the building: a movie theater. For almost 50 years, this was a success, but in 1979, Aegidium was transformed into a day center. Nearly 6 years later, the doors closed due to the bad state of the building.

In the past years, many potential projects have passed, but none of them have been a success thus far. The building requires heavy renovation, and the fact that strong regulations apply for that renovation makes it expensive and challenging. Let’s hope that this amazing building finds a new owner and purpose very soon.

Here is what it looks like ...

Clancy's comment: What a gracious-looking building. So sad.

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Published on November 24, 2020 11:38

23 November 2020 - PORTRAITS OF STRANGERS TAKEN ON AN iPHONE

PORTRAITS OF STRANGERS TAKEN ON AN iPHONE
G'day folks,

Most of us take some sort of public transportation to work. You can see a lot of different and interesting people there. Most of them are usually busy thinking about the day ahead, daydreaming, busy with their phones or books.
Dina Alfasi a mother of a 15-year-old and an Israeli engineer who works in a hospital, takes advantage of these moments to capture simple but beautiful portraits of strangers lost in thought. On her daily commute to work, she uses her iPhone to photograph simple moments of life.
"I'm inspired by the little moments that happen every day. My work is a testament to telling stories through a single photo and proof that all you need is just to look around to find magic moments," said Dina. Now, let's see her magnificent work ...

Clancy's comment: Wow. Magnificent shots. Love ya work, Dina. I've taken quite a few shots like these during my travels. One is below ...
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Published on November 22, 2020 12:02

2 January 2021 - AMAZING TODDLER SURVIVES FREEZING CONDITIONS

AMAZING TODDER SURVIVES

FREEZING CONDITIONS

G'day folks,

Children are amazingly resilient. They seem to be able to endure bumps and bruises without any permanent damage, but, unfortunately, they also have their limits. There are too many stories about children dying in unforeseen circumstances. Even so, some have thankfully managed to escape the chains of certain death in unimaginable ways. Here is such a scenario.

In 2001, on a subzero night in Alberta Canada, 13-month-old, Erika, got out of the bed she was sharing with her mother, opened the unlocked back door, and wandered out into the freezing night. At some point, she fell into the snow and laid there for an unknown amount of time. Erika’s mother didn’t realize she was missing from the bed until 3.00 AM. Amazingly, she quickly spotted the toddler lying face down in the snow. When the paramedics arrived, they began reviving Erika’s cold, blue body.

However, a problem arose when they could not insert a needle into her frozen skin, nor could they insert a breathing tube in her mouth as it was full of ice. Luckily, their persistence paid off, and they managed to stick an IV in her leg and had success fitting the breathing tube. Once at the hospital, Erika was covered with a warming blanket that heated her body from the outside. Astonishingly, her heart, which had stopped beating for two hours, began beating again. Erika beat all the odds and survived one of the deadliest scenarios.