San Giovanni Battista by Mario Botta

I am really moved to go here:

Switzerland : Ticino Mogno village church San Giovanni Battista designed by Mario Botta

more great images here

and the architect Mario Botta's other funky work

including this: 

WELLNESS CENTRE “BERGOASE”, AROSA, SWITZERLAND 2003-2006

see some of his sketches here

I've also been dying to go to Lausanne. This is what the journey looks like by bicycle:

Cathedral Candles

I thought I had a quarter in my pocket.
I wanted to light a candle
They're majestic aren't they?

Get a picture with me right in front while I light the candle
oh but damn I don't have a quarter.
Get the whole thing, all the way up to the top.

Are you getting the whole thing?
That very tippy-top candle?
_

What do we visit a church for?
A cathedral built for the worship of a God we regard skeptically
and whose name we take in vain.

If you get a shiver of emotion upon entring,
which heart string is being pulled?
Is it a testament to Man who built it?
Faith that inspired it?
Self congratulation for being there?
Gratitude for that moment?

Awe.
Boredom.
Flippancy.
Nostalgia.
Curiosity.
_

What would the men who built it think of the world surrounding today.

photo Jean Gaumy: October 1980. Pilgrims standing in front of the cave. Lourdes, France

Views from New York Bridges

Lille France Day Trip

Day trip from Paris to Lille en images

nostalgic for Belgium

a series of photos form a weekend in Brussels and Antwerp - TEXTURE

Airport Behind the Scenes

Well, not really behind the scenes as they are out in plain sight, but I love watching the people who orchestrate our departures and arrivals, without whom we would not have fuel, baggage, beverage, or any idea where to park the damn thing. Not to mention I'm a sucker for a uniform.

These two are from my recent layover in Brussels on my way back to Paris from Hartford, Connecticut.

Wintertime on A lake in Norway

four times per year

the provisions are delivered

four times a year 

once in dead cold

the roads are closed

and a boat's not an option

the lake is now ice

with a coating of snow

travel 'cross ice 

leaving tracks not to follow

they are a caution 

someone's passed here before

 

the sack on a sled

efficient and agile

at the start you say

I could have taken more

In the refuge oasis

 the island of tress

you can't stay too long

you feel safe, you won't leave

the wind may be biting

advance past the tree line

just think of arriving

on the far side

it seems too distant

with your heavy load

but you've done it before

knowing that's all you need

take the first step

where the ice isn't worn down

across to the clearing

with the old crooked tree

 

deliver the wares

warm up your feet

start plans for next time

prepare once again to leave 

Color in the Arctic

Frank Hurley photographs the British Imperial Trans-Antarctic Expedition led by Sir Ernest Shackleton’s on the ill fated 'Endurance.'

little trips

I am planning my summer weekend trips,
Luxembourg, Antwerp, Prato, and the west of France to two little knitwear factories. And maybe Switzerland (Zurich? Lausanne?).

So I have been looking at train tickets, and also at itineraries.
In Luxembourg I know I want to see the MUDAM (modern art museum) for the John Stezaker and Mac Adams Exhibits. And then see a couple of shops, I hope. But basically discover this amazing little place.
Here is a one day NYTimes itinerary
So I basically want to make sure that I make the most of it. You know?

But train tickets also gave me the idea that I could rent a car and do Antwerp, Luxembourg, and Metz (to see the new Centre Pompidou branch) all in one efficient go. And see the country side.

I need to buy a video camera. And an SLR.
Oh man.