Category: Europe

Poland, ReligiousLeave a comment

Salt Pope, Krakow, Poland

Rich McClear

I’m not sure of the theological meaning, but Pope John Paul II has been turned into a pillar of salt.  In Genesis it was Lot’s wife who became a saline pillar.  Her sin was looking back at Sodom, the home from which she was being evacuated by angels before its destruction. The Wieliczka mines in Krakow Poland are a UNESCO World Heritage Site.  We took a bus to the salt mines and went on the tour.  We went down about 438 feet, although the mines go down much further than that, and walked for about three kilometers underground.  The wondrous … Continue reading Salt Pope, Krakow, Poland

EstoniaLeave a comment

Wooden Tallinn, Estonia.

Rich McClear

In Tallinn, there are architectural rings.  Right outside the old town is the “new town” a mix of modern steel and glass and Stalinist “wedding cake” architecture. Beyond that are working class Tallinn neighborhoods that consist of almost all old wooden buildings, single family dwellings, shops, workshops, and wooden apartment houses. Many have carpenter Gothic touches and are painted in different colors. The most famous of these neighborhoods is Kalamaja.  I hope that at least some of these neighborhoods can be “protected,” as the old town from the modern “new town” encroachments.  More than the German styled Hanseatic League old … Continue reading Wooden Tallinn, Estonia.

Belgium, NetherlandsLeave a comment

Soft Borders, Belgium and the Netherlands at Baarle.

Rich McClear

Our friends Dave and Carol Lam took us to Baarle when we were working in the Balkans.   We wondered about the possibility of ever being able to draw borders that reflected ethnic realities.  Dave said he had something he wanted to show us, the municipality of Baarle in Belgium, or is it the Netherlands?  The map of Europe has many geographic anomalies. But one of the strangest borders runs through Baarle.  The town is divided between the countries, Baarle-Nassau is Dutch and Baarle-Hertog is Belgian. The dividing line is anything but straight, or rational.  The border was set in the Treaty … Continue reading Soft Borders, Belgium and the Netherlands at Baarle.

France, Religious1 Comment

“A Mighty Fortress” The fortified churches of Thierache, France.

Rich McClear

In Eastern France there are several war related “roads” to follow, the “road of the fortified towns,” “The road of the battlefields” linking battlefields of the two world wars, and “The road of the military cemeteries.” Wars happened here with alarming regularity.   The road I found most fascinating was the “The Road of the Fortified Churches” celebrating about 65 churches (God’s castles someone called them) built in the Thierache region for the protection of the civilian population.  These towns sat on the border between Champagne and Picardy near Flanders.  They could not afford to wall themselves.  Many did not have … Continue reading “A Mighty Fortress” The fortified churches of Thierache, France.

KosovoLeave a comment

Prizren, the Picture Perfect Balkan Town

Rich McClear

Prizren is the picture perfect Balkan town.  It’s cut in two by the Drini River; a graceful Turkish arched bridge unites the two halves of the town.  A 15th century Mosque dominates the riverbank.  That Mosque is built on Roman foundations.  At least 5 other minarets pierce the skyline.  The citadel overlooking the town was first built in the 4th century BC by the Illyrians and used, in turn, by the Romans, Byzantines and Turks.  Halfway up the hill sits a Byzantine monastery.  Another Orthodox church sits near the main town square.  Then there is the clock tower and Turkish … Continue reading Prizren, the Picture Perfect Balkan Town

a, Bulgaria, ReligiousLeave a comment

Rila Monastery, Bulgaria, 1997

Rich McClear

These pictures are faded.  We scanned them to put on this website.   March 1997 There are fine monasteries, isolated in the mountains, and of only passing interest to the Turks, so they remain.  We went to Rila.  It is a four story arcaded and fortified place with fine frescos that have the faces of donors to the monastery depicted as saints, and demons.  I don’t know if the placement has anything to do with the size of the donation.  While we happily spent hours in the monastery on one fine Sunday, it is the mountains rising around it that … Continue reading Rila Monastery, Bulgaria, 1997

Bulgaria, ReligiousLeave a comment

Rakoivishki Monastery, Bulgaria.

Rich McClear

This is from October 2011. We drove back to Serbia by back roads.  The main attraction was to be Belogradchik, an Ottoman fort built around a series of natural red rock monoliths.  In pictures they look spectacular, but we had fog down to the deck so I really can’t testify to them first hand.  Now I know how cruise ship passengers arriving in Sitka must feel.  We also visited the Rakovishki Monastery, which was a center for Bulgarian Nationalism against the Turks.  The Turks destroyed much of the monastery in 1850 but left one chapel from the 11th century unharmed.  … Continue reading Rakoivishki Monastery, Bulgaria.

BulgariaLeave a comment

Sofia, Bulgaria

Rich McClear

My Friend Lili from Sofia asked where Bulgaria was in my blog.  Here are some Archive pictures from October 2011.  October 30, 2011 Sofia, Bulgaria Anyone who digs a few meters under Sofia’s the streets finds layers of history ranging from Neolithic to Ottoman with Roman, Byzantine and Medieval Bulgarian layered between.  In 2004 excavations started for the hotel in which we were staying, workers uncovered a Roman Amphitheater and they had to redesign the hotel to protect the ruins and incorporate them into the design, giving the hotel a striking atrium and one of the more unique health clubs … Continue reading Sofia, Bulgaria

GermanyLeave a comment

Freising, Bavaria, Germany

Rich McClear

Freising, the town closest to the Munich Airport is a nice place to lay over between two overnight flights.  Pictures here are from this winter and this summer, different views at different times of the year.  It has, that it claims to be the oldest brewery in Germany, a friendly Marriott airport hotel and shops and cafes that allow for a restful stopover between flights. Continue reading Freising, Bavaria, Germany