SHADOW SHOT SUNDAY--the canal in Nimes

Another road trip shot!  The canal in Nimes, France, which has, as you see, locks.

See other shadows on Shadow Shot Sunday.

WEEKEND REFLECTIONS--The Roman bridge in Padova

Another photo from my recent road trip to Provence. This is the ancient Roman bridge in Padova, Italy, that is still in use.   Those Romans knew what they were doing...

See other reflections on James' WEEKEND REFLECTIONS.

SKYWATCH--

View of the campanile, or free-standing bell tower, in Aix-en-Provence, with a nineteenth-century column (replacing a 17th century one) that stands above a fountain in Aix's Place des Augustins.

See other skies on SKYWATCH.

Aix-en-Provence

A recent trip to Provence, and also to my old student days' town of Aix-en-Provence, yielded his 50s-type gal in front of the Monoprix, which is the same one we used to shop in.

ABC Wednesday--"Y" is for "youth"

Alternately, it's been soaking wet or very, very hot here in Belgrade. This photo was taken on a hot day while visiting the Belgrade zoo.  My granddaughter was spending a few days with me, so we decided to hit the zoo early, and I am glad we did. Just us and the animals for quite a while.

Here she is giving the statue of Sami the Chimp a sip of water....  Sami was a Belgrade zoo legend, and you really should read about him right here.

Ah, youth...but I have to say the youthful Mila and her not-so-youthful grandma held up well.

See other Ys on ABC WEDNESDAY.

Cooling off

You're  not really allowed to go dipping in public fountains, but these two boys did. For a while they sat on the bench across from me, hesitating whether or not to take the plunge.  As you see, they did, and were soon joined by a four-legged friend who was not so hesitant.

Berries I know, berries I don't

The markets are  full of yummy summer produce, including all kinds of berries. I recognize on this photo raspberries, blackberries, currants, and (I think) chokeberries on the right, but I can't remember the name of the ones in the middle that look like little red onions.   Seller told me, but I forgot...

FLASH:  Thanks to Therese (See comments), I found that they unknown ones are gooseberries.  They're called ogrozd here....no wonder I forgot their name!

SHADOW SHOT SUNDAY

Above the entrance on the Cimitero Monumentale in Verona, Italy, where I had passed through on my recent trip to the Provence region of France.

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WEEKEND REFLECTIONS--the canal in Nimes

Went on a week-long trip to Provence and caught this reflection in the beautiful town of Nimes, France.


See other reflections on James' WEEKEND REFLECTIONS.

Who's going in?

Okay, dear readers, how many of you are going in?

Fighters

I tried to find information about this statue downtown in a passage, but to no avail. It seems to be depicting Serbs fighting their enemies at different times in history.

You've got a friend.

This homeless lady has a four-legged friend, and a well-fed one at that.

You've got mail!

If  you do, you'd better make sure your mailbox has a door...otherwise your mail might be up for grabs.

Spotted in an old passageway downtown.

Rooftop view?

A friend and I had heard about a cafe on the roof of one of Belgrade's auditoriums downtown, so up we went.

Nothing special, and not even a great view...

SKYWATCH--riverboat

It's gettin' on to summer. This riverboat usually transports tourists, but it doesn't seem to have any passengers.

Anyway, made for a good shot.

See other skies on SKYWATCH.

Kids in the park

These two buddies managed to climb up on top of this defunct fountain and were deeply engaged in conversation....until I pulled out my phone. And then came the 'cool' pose on this very humid afternoon.

ABC WEDNESDAY 'W' is for 'Weight of the World'

These three fellow have been spiffed up since I last posted them in 2009. The Jugoexport sign is also gone, since the building was sold for an exorbitant price you'll see if you click on my link.

The weight of the world is still heavy, literally and figuratively.

See more Ws on ABC WEDNESDAY.

The food court

I have to admit I rarely sit in a food court, but the other evening I went to a large shopping mall to see a film I'd heard about, and found myself in one.

I had coffee, while these two girls enjoyed a quick meal.

Running

The weather was great this weekend, so many people took advantage of it, as did this fellow early in the evening when the temperature dropped a bit.

SHADOW SHOT SUNDAY--the pedestrian

A pedestrian passes against the light behind a policeman, who is oblivious to his infraction.

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WEEKEND REFLECTIONS--Hotel Constantine

It is true that Belgrade is attracting more and more tourists, and it seems that there's always a hotel going up. This one is just around the corner from where I live, and indeed, there's one going up across the street from me as well....

It sure makes for a good reflection.

See other reflections on James'WEEKEND REFLECTIONS.

SKYWATCH--an oldie but goodie

The photo is not an oldie, but a newie of an 'old' place I often admire when I am in Kalemegdan Park.

Always attractive.

See other skies on SKYWATCH.

Sadness...

Yesterday morning I received news that a friend of mine here in Belgrade passed away the preceding night. I had been going to visit her, and each time I found her weaker and weaker until the inevitable happened.

Her name was Nena, and she was my oldest Serbian friend whom I met shortly after moving here. Our kids spent their younger years playing together, for a while she lived just down the hall from me, we used to watch Dynasty together, exchange recipes,...fun friend things.

Nena would offer me photos for my blog, and here is one for you. I will miss her.

abc wednesday = "V" is for "Vrdnik"

Vrdnik (VURD-neek) is a small town not so far north of Belgrade, It only has a population of about 3,500, but thermal baths and a bit of history.  Last summer (Yes, I know, it's been a while, but I've been absent!) I took my grandkids there and we had fun doing small town stuff.

You can read a bit more about Vrdnik on this link.

See other Vs on ABC WEDNESDAY.

The other side of the street

A creature of  habit I am, but today I found myself walking down a street I often take, but on the opposite sidewalk. I was surprised to see this lion's head above the Union Hotel, the door of which I have passed by many times.

So I told myself I will start to walk down the opposite sides of familiar streets to see what I can see!

A snooze in the hay

Time for a little snooze in the hay that remained from a recent happening in Kalemegdan Park.  This fellow caught the hay between the heavy rainstorms we've been experiencing.

Hey, where's the warm weather?

Down with nature, Up with money...

This is going to be a rant post. In recent years, Belgrade has seen a mushrooming of shopping malls,, luxury hotels, and other attractions for the foreign and local well-heeled crowd and often in detriment to Mother Nature.  One such recent horror was the destruction of an old, well-loved tree in Kalemegdan Park, under which children played, locals dancced the kolo, and of course which provided shade during Belgrade's hot summers.

It was removed because of the City's desire (notice I did not say the local populace) for a (ashamed even to write this) cable car that would whiz people from Kalemegdan Park to the large park in New Belgrade just across the river. A pedestrian foot bridge would have been more useful, in my opinion, and hey, it could have even been a covered one for inclement weather.

The second photo I posted shows where the tree stood...and the last one, a poignant photo by Dusan Knezevic with a model portraying the tree's sorrow.  And mine.

You can read about this plan at this link. So far, major protests have stalled the cable car....but you and I both know that it will go through. Damn them.

THEME DAY- Pink

Pink is the color of caring, compassion, and love. In this photo I was wearing pink, but all those qualities apply to His Holiness the Dalai Lama, whom I had the extreme pleasure of meeting last February in Dharamsala on my 7th (Woo!) trip to India.

 See how others exxpressed today's theme of "pink' at CITY DAILY PHOTO THEME DAY.