Jaap van 't Veen's photos

The Aoos Gorge is eight kilometers long and runs between the steep slopes of Trapezitsa (2.024 m) and Tymfi (2.497 m) mountains. The depth is approximately 1.500 meters, while the width varies from 300 to 2,500 meters. The gorge - located in the North Pindos National Park - ends at the stone bridge of Konitsa. The gorge offers a fascinating landscape with the crystal clear water of the Aoos river and the thick vegetation on the slopes on both sides of the river. The ecosystem along the river is home to many animal and bird species.

The Ir. D.F. Woudagemaal is the largest, still functioning steam pumping station in the world. The pumping station was opened in 1920 by Queen Wilhelmina. Its job was pumping excess water from the provice of Friesland into the Zuiderzee (later IJsselmeer ). In 1966 the pumping station received reinforcement of the electric Hoogland gemaal in Stavoren. During the winters of the 19th and the first half of the 20th century, large parts of Friesland were flooded. To counter this flooding, it was decided to build a steam pumping station at Lemmer in 1913. The pumping station is named after Ir. Dirk Frederik Wouda, who served as Chief Engineer at the time of the Provincial Public Works and was responsible for the style and performance of the building. In the huge machine hall there are four steam engines with four powerful flywheels, which are still operational. In 1967, after running on coal for 47 years, the boilers were converted to run on heavy fuel oil.The steam engines and flywheels drive eight centrifugal pumps that move about 6 million m³ of water per day. The Woudagemaal is brought under steam at least twice a year by its owner Wetterskip Fryslân . The largest steam pumping station in the world still plays a crucial role in the Frisian water authority to this day. When there is a lot of rain or during a persistent storm, the Woudagemaal can be used to help keep the Frisian water at the same level. The remarkable brick building - inspired by the Amsterdam School style - features clean lines and an austere appearance and has characteristics of Berlage's rationalism, such as the steel rafters, the use of stone, oak, sophisticated colours and decorative edges. Since 1998, the Woudagemaal has been one of the ten UNESCO World Heritage sites in the Netherlands. Nowadays it is open for visitors.

Rano Raraku is a site on the slope of a volcano (PiP1 and 2), which was the statue ‘factory’ of Easter Island. It was the birthplace of a Neolithic culture’s progency. This is the quarry, where the moai (monolithic human figures carved by the Rapa Nui people) were carved in the volcanic rock and transported over the island. There are still about 400 statues in various states of completion (PiP 3,4 and 5): from rectangular blocks barely discernable in the rock face to mostly completed moai , held in the matrix of the rock by a mere keel, to completed moai standing largely buried on the slope. Among them the unique kneeling moai Tukuturi (PiP6) with a shape and design different from all other moai and Te Tokanga or Ko Teto Kena, the largest moai ever carved with a height of 20 meters and weight of (estimated) 270 tons (PiP7). More pictures of Easter Island: www.ipernity.com/doc/294067/43947814 and www.ipernity.com/doc/294067/45938804

The Tromostovje (Triple Bridge) is a group of three bridges across the Ljubljanica River, connecting the historical center with the more modern parts of Ljubljana. The central bridge - then called Lower Bridge - was opened in 1842, replacing an old wooden medieval bridge, which was already mentioned in 1280. This Lower Bridge had two arches and a metal fence. In order to prevent the ‘1842 bridge’ becoming a bottleneck the famous Slovene architect Joze Plečnik designed in 1929 the two side bridges for pedestrians. Construction started in 1931 and continued until spring 1932. Nowadays the Triple Bridge is part of the pedestrian zone of the city. From each of the side bridges, two stairways lead to terraces situated just above the river The central bridge is partly built from limestone. Other parts are built from concrete. The ‘fences’ with 642 balusters are made of artificial concrete. The platform is covered with granite blocks laid in 2010. The bridge was renovated in 1992.

The Convento de San Bernardo (Convent of St. Bernard) is a Catholic monastery. The building is one of the oldest in the city and was built in the late 16th or early 17th century. It was initially built as an hermitage for San Bernardo , Salta’s first patron saint. The building must have been destroyed by an earthquake in 1692, since every record from the beginnings of the 18th century has been lost. But the records show that it was in 1726 that a new building was funded to function as a hospital. As years went by, the building was subject to many reforms and it was later designated to other uses until 1846 when it was gifted to the Carmelite sisters. They turned the old hermitage and the hospital into the Convento de San Bernardo , as it stands nowadays. The convent has a wonderful carved entrance door, made by indigenous craftsmen in the year of 1762 from a carob tree. Only Carmelite nuns may enter the convent. Visitors can approach the adobe building and buy made pastries made by the nuns. The complex was declared a National Historical Monument in 1941.

The Fuschlsee (Lake Fuschl) is a lake in the Salzkammergut, not far away from Salzburg. The lake has an area of 2.7 km², a maximum depth of 66 meters, a maximum length of 4.1 km and a maximum width of 0.9 km. Lake Fuschl lies at an altitude of 664 meters above sea level. It is owned by the Forest Commission of Austria. The lake get its water from de Ellmaubach and Hallbach. It flows via the Fuschler Ache into the Mondsee and via Attersee, Ager and Traun into the Danube. The lake has excellent water quality (it is the clearest and cleanest of the lakes of Salzkammergut; in fact it has drinking water quality) and exceptionally well preserved underwater vegetation in its natural state.

Ons' Lieve Heer op Solder (Our Lord in the Attic) is a museum housed in a17th-century canal house in the heart of the oldest part of Amsterdam and bordering the infamous red light district. The residential canal house along the Oudezijds Voorburgwal - one of the many canlas in Amsterdam - was built in 1630. A wealthy catholic merchant from Germany - Jan Hartman - bought this house on the Oudezijds Voorburgwal and the two adjecent buildings on the Heintje Hoekssteeg . He lived there with his family during the period when public Catholic celebrations were officially forbidden in the Netherlands. The Protestants had taken over power in the city in 1578. Roman Catholics couldn’t visit longer official churches for mass; from then on they were destined for Protestant worship. Jan Hartman decided to built a so called schuilkerk (clandestine church) - one of the many in that period in Amsterdam. Between 1661 and 1663 the top three floors of his houses were changed into a house church, originally named ’t Hart . Entrance to the church was gained through a fake door hidden in the living room. This led onto a tiny spiral staircase that would take the faithful Papists into the top reaches of the attic. The schuilkerk served for more than two centuries, until it was replaced by the Sint-Nicolaaskerk , opposite the Central Station in Amsterdam. In 1888 it was converted into a museum, making it the second oldest museum in the city. Unlike the rest of the house, which was as far as possible restored to its original 17th-century condition, the church itself has been restored to its appearance in the year 1862. Next to the clandestine church, the museum consists of several rooms of the former canal house.

During our visit of the Hohensalzburg we were most impressed by the Fürstenzimmer , located in the main building. These Prince’s Chambers, consisting of the Golden Hall, the Golden Chamber and the archbishop’s bedchamber. The furnishings in all of these rooms are original and have remained unchanged since 1501/1502. We were a little bit unlucky as in one of the rooms were restorations work was in progress. Archbishop Leonhard von Keutschach had the magnificent state apartments installed, which were primarily used for representative purposes and for festivities. The Golden Hall was richly decorated and indicates that Hohensalzburg was not only a refuge in times of crisis, but frequently also a residence up to the 16th century. The Golden Hall has four massive marble pillars and one 17 meters long beam, supporting the ceiling. The Golden Chamber and the bedchamber both have stunning gothic wood carvings. The Golden Chamber has benches along the walls, decorated with grapes, foliage and animals. The smallest room is the Archbishop’s bedchamber with even a private bathroom. It has also a richly decorated tile stove. The ceilings of the three rooms are coffered, each coffer being adorned with gold buttons, symbolizing the stars in the sky.

Sankt Gilgen is located - 25 kilometers east of Salzburg - on the northwest bank of the Wolfgangsee . (PiP1) Half of the lake belongs to the village. Sankt Gilgen was first mentioned in 1376. In 1863, shipping began on the Wolfgangsee and that brought attention to the small village. The construction of a railway in 1893 led to another increase in tourism. Rich Viennese started to build summer residences there. In 1957 the Zwölferhorn cable car was opened (see: www.ipernity.com/doc/294067/49357046 ). Sankt Gilgen is a quiet, small and charming village with an idyllic atmosphere with typical Austrian houses with flowery balconies (PiP2). The small town centre has a shopping street, a 13th century Catholic parish church and a town hall, which was built in 1914/1915. In front of the town hall is a statue of Mozart playing the violin (main picture). Sankt Wolfgang promotes itself as Mozart-Dorf .The grandfather of the famous composer Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart worked in Sankt Gilgen, his mother was born there and his sister also lived in the village. The composer himself never visited his mother's house of birth or his sister's house. Nowadays this Mozarthaus houses a museum.

From my travel journal (2009) translated with “www.DeepL.com”: We leave Purmamarca and follow Ruta 52. Outside the town there are still beautiful coloured rock formations and lots of flowers (PiP1). As we climb higher and higher, the landscape slowly changes and has just sparse vegetation, with only cacti at the end. At Lipan the road has the first series of hairpin bends (PiP2) of the Cuesta de Lipán (main picture). The surroundings and the views of the Andes mountains are getting more and more impressive. We climb in our car with a reasonable speed, but a few large trucks are crawling up the mountain road. Busses however are more in a hurry and pass us at the most impossible places. After thirty bends and hairpins we arrive on a kind of plateau. Not much later we reach Abra de Potrerillos, a pass at the unbelievable altitude of 4,170 metres above sea level. It is cloudy and therefore freezing cold. With three cars it's a bit busier than on the road. An indigenous woman has displayed her things, hoping to sell something (PiP3). How she got here and where she came from is not clear to us. When we start the descent, the clouds quickly become less and the view better. We look out on a kind of plateau and on several Andes peaks, most of them are covered with snow. In the distance is a small white spot (PiP4): without doubt the salt flats of the Salinas Grandes. We descend with a few big bends and drive through a kind of gorge to a long straight road (PiP5) with always a view on the dazzling white salt plain. It takes a while before we really reach the salt lake (PiP6). But at last there are the Salinas Grandes , as far as the eye can see and that still at an altitude of almost 3,500 meters ….. ….. The way back is on the same road and we climb above 4.000 meters again. The weather is better now and on the pass it is even sunny. We buy a piece of rock from the lonely indigenous woman and make some (new) pictures. At the Cuesta de Lipan low hanging clouds make the descent even more straining. After an incredible adventure of seven hours we are back Purmamarca.

Fortress Hohensalzburg - more than 900 years old - is a completely walled castle. It towers high above Salzburg (PiP1), on the top of the Festungsberg . With a length of 250 meters and a width of 150 meters, it is one of the largest medieval castles in Europe and looks more or less like a small village (PiP2). Hohensalzburg was built in 1077 on behalf of archbishop Gebhard and has been inhabited by the prince-bishops of Salzburg for centuries. In 1462, the castle was fortified with four towers. Under archbishop Leonhard von Keutschach the fortress was extended from 1495 until 1519. Since the middle of the 17th century, no large-scale changes have taken place. Hohensalzburg was only besieged once during the German Peasants’ War (1524-1526). But it has never been captured by foreign troops and has therefore been preserved in good condition. During the Napoleonic Wars, the last prince-bishop fled to Vienna and the castle was abandoned without resistance. Hohensalzburg also served as a prison for a long time. Bishop Wolf Dietrich von Raitenau was imprisoned here until his death. He lived at the height of Salzburg's salt wealth and helped the city to build many beautiful buildings. However, he had a 'secret' wife and 15 children. When he had built the beautiful Mirabell Castle with gardens for that woman and children, the Pope in Rome thought it was enough and had the bishop imprisoned in Hohensalzburg. Until the Second World War, the fortress was a prison. It is now primarily an event venue and one of the city's main tourist attractions. A number of artists live in Hohensalzburg and the buildings are also home to three museums. From the fortress one has a wonderful view of the historical city of Salzburg and its surroundings (PiP3). For me the highlight of my visit were Princes’ Chambers .

The foundation of the Sankt Wolfgang pilgrimage church goes back to a legend from 976. Bishop Wolfgang von Regensburg lived as a hermit on the Falkenstein and decided to build a first church. The location of the building was inspired by his famous "Axthrow", a divine dispensation. He threw an axe with the vow to build a church where he would find him again. When he found the axe after three days, he built the church at the site, a rocky hill next to the Wolfgangsee. In 1183 the church was first mentioned in a document as Aberseekirche (Abersee was the original name of the Wolfgangsee), which was renamed Capella St. Wolfgangi in 1194. The existence of a stone church is mentioned in 1291. Next to the church founded by Wolfgang von Regensburg, a Romanesque church was built, which met the requirements of the upcoming pilgrimages. That building was destroyed by fire in 1429. Abbot Simon Reuchling commissioned the construction of a new church, which was built as it still largely exists today. The most famous piece in the interior of the church is the “Pacher altar” (PiP2). This winged altarpiece is the only fully preserved altar by Michael Pacher, an important medieval artist from Bruneck. In 1481 it was brought from South Tyrol to Sankt Wolfgang and set up in the presence of Pacher. The altar is one of the most important art monuments in Salzkammergut and Upper Austria and has gained a worldwide reputation through the pilgrimage. Another highlight is the baroque double altar by T. Schwanthaler ( around 1675). Originally - so is said - this altar was to be erected instead of the “Pacher altar”, but Schwanthaler was so enthusiastic about that altar that he decided to erect his own at the present location. The fence around it indicates exactly the place where the first church, built by Bishop Wolfgang stood (main picture and PiP1). The church in Sankt Wolfgang is nowadays still one of the most significant pilgrimage sites in Central Europe.

Salinas Grandes is a salt plain with a surface of approximately 220 km2 on the border of the provinces of Jujuy and Salta in northwest Argentina. The salar lies at an elevation of about 3.500 meters above sea level. The origin of Salinas Grandes dates from an extended period of time between 5 and 10 million years ago, when the basin was covered with water with a large amount of salts coming from volcanic activity. The gradual evaporation of such continental saline waters gave rise to this salt having a crust of salt up to 0,5 meters thick. During our visit we saw that salt was still being extracted. Old rusty trucks drove across the plain to bring the extracted salt to a central location. In a kind of settlement with a house of salt blocks, the white and shiny salt was packed in bags by hand under a burning sun !!

Schärding - located along the river Inn - is known as a Baroque town with its numerous Baroque mansions and historic squares. The town was first mentioned in a document in 804 as an agricultural settlement "Scardinga". Shipping and trade - first only salt, then grain, wine, ores, glass, cattle, wood and textiles - made Schärding a wealthy city in the Middle Ages. During several wars Schärding had to suffer from looting and destruction. In the last days of the Second World War in 1945 the Americans bombed the city from the Bavarian side of the Inn, destroying and damaging many houses. In 1966, fifty restored town houses were declared a protected cityscape. The best example of this can be seen on the north-eastern side of the Oberer Stadtplatz (Upper Town Square) with mansions from the 16th to the 19th century. This row of buildings is called Silberzeile (Silver Lane), probably because of the rich merchants who settled here when the Inn was still an important trade route. The pastel-coloured facades date back to the late medieval guild colours, some of which are still valid to this day: Red for the Butchers’ Guild, Blue for the Bakers’ Guild, Green for the Wine Merchants’ Guild, and Yellow for the Brewers’ Guild.

The Petersfriedhof (St. Peter's Cemetery) is a cemetery that looks more like a ‘park’. This oldest Christian cemetery in Salzburg is a quiet green oasis in the busy historical centre of the city. The cemetery is located at the foot of the Festungsberg . Petersfriedhof is probably of the same age as the St. Peter’s Abbey, which dates from the year 696. The cemetery is surrounded on three sides by arcades and there are ancient graves of monks and inhabitants of Salzburg. Originally, this cemetery was only intended for residents of the monastery. Later, civilians were also buried in this atmospheric cemetery. The oldest surviving tombstone of the cemetery is that of abbot Dietmar, who died in 1288. The cemetery was closed in 1878 and the site decayed until in 1930 the monks of St. Peter's successfully urged for the admission of new burials. In the middle of the cemetery stands the gothic Margarethenkapelle (Margaret Chapel) from 1491 (PiP4). On the outside wall of this chapel there are many old marble tombstones.

The Palacio Noel (Noel Palace) is a stunning mansion with neo-colonial and baroque influences. The mansion with its plain white walls, lace-like window grilles, dark wooden bow-windows and wrought-iron balconies was designed by architect Martin Noel, following his return to Argentina in 1914. The construction was completed in 1922. It has a wonderful Andalucian style courtyard with fountains, niches in and Moorish-tiled benches. The residence, which he shared with his brother, was sold to the city of Buenos Aries in 1936. In 1947 it became (and still is) the home of the Museo de Arte Hispanoamericano Isaac Fernández Blanco , featuring an important collection of Spanish-American art. Noel Palace was renamed in its founder’s honor at that time. We were unlucky to visit Noel Palace on a day when the museum was closed. But a friendly staff member let us in, so we could see the building and the courtyard anyway. A wonderful green oasis surrounded by modern apartments and skyscrapers, just a stone's throw from the busy Retiro railway station.

Stift Reichersberg (Reichersberg Abbey) was founded in 1084. After the early death of their only son, Gebhard, who reportedly drowned in the nearby river Inn, nobleman Wernher von Reichersberg and his wife Dietburga founded a monastery near their castle. The advice to bring Augustinian Canons to Reichersberg probably came from Archbishop Gebhard von Salzburg, the brother-in-law of the founder. The first canons came from Saxony. The founder himself also ended up in the monastery after the death of his wife. Times of prosperity and adversity varied in the course of the following centuries. In 1624 the relatively small romanesque-gothic monastery complex was completely destroyed by a devastating fire. During the next years of the 17th century it was replaced by baroque new buildings, which today belong to the most important baroque buildings in Upper Austria. The complex is grouped around two courtyards. The most important buildings are located along the 123 meter long outer courtyard, an architectural jewel with arcades and the marble fountain. The fountain is crowned with a figure of St. Michael, the patron of the monastery. The abbey church of St. Michael was consecrated in 1644. The furnishings are late 18th century, with frescoes, marble side-altars and a beautiful pulpit; in 1883 the organ was widened. During the Napoleonic Wars (1803–1815) it had to struggle for its existence. In 1810 the monastery was placed under administration and seven years later monastic activities resumed. By ceding the Innviertel to Austria ("Peace of Teschen", 1779), the Reicherberg monastery escaped secularisation, but had to fight hard for its existence during the Napoleonic Wars (1803–1815): in 1809 the monastery fell to the French, then again to Bavaria, until it was finally reassigned to Austria in April 1816. In spite of great material and personal hardship, a regular monastic life was again possible. During World War II (1939-1945) the monastery was forced to provide a home for a flying school, but avoided being closed down. Nowadays the abbey is still owned and inhabited by Augustinian Canons.

The Dom St. Stephan (St. Stephen’s Cathedral) in Passau is located on the highest point of the old city between the rivers Inn and Danube. Other churches have stood on this place: already around the year 450 a church in the ancient city of Batavis is testified. The bishop's church was first mentioned in a document in 730 and has been the cathedral of the diocese since 739. A previous gothic church building was largely destroyed by a devastating town fire in 1662. The present cathedral has baroque architecture and was built between 1668 and 1698 by the famous Italian architect Carlo Lurago. The elaborate stucco works and wonderful frescos in the interior were done by other Italian artists. The beautifully gilded pulpit dates from 1726 and was made in Vienna. Between 1947 and 1953 a new high altar for the cathedral was created; like the ceiling fresco it depicts the stoning and the vision of St. Stephen. The Cathedral - one of the largest north of the Alps - is 102 meters long and 33.5 meters wide; the dome reaches a height of 69 meters. The octagonal upper parts of the two towers - 68 meters high - date from as far back as 1896. The Dom St. Stephan has one of the largest organs in the world. From 1924 to 1928 a large organ was built, which was rebuilt and extended at the end of the 20th century. The organ currently has 17.974 pipes and 233 registers; the largest organ pipe is 11 meters high and the smallest 6 millimeters.