Jaap van 't Veen's photos

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.

A pucará is a defensive hilltop site or fortress built by the prehispanic and historic inhabitants of the central Andean area. Around the year 1000 there was a line of twenty-two of these aboriginal fortresses that were deployed on the hills along the Quebrada de Humahuaca. The pucará of Tilcara (PiP4) is the best-known archaeological site of northwest Argentina, but often full of tourists. Less than 10 km’s away we found another pucará which we heard about in our accommodation. This pucará de Juella is located at 2.750 meters on a plateau outside the hamlet of Juella. This fortress was inhabited until the 12th century and is not altered or reconstructed. The ruins - often nothing more than fallen rocks or deposits of the pucará - are surrounded by a forest of cardones . It was quite difficult to find the pucará , as it was not signposted and we even had to cross a fast-flowing river (PiP3). On the other bank of that river we found a local, who - for a couple of pesos - pointed us in the right direction.

Nikopolis (or Nicopolis) was founded by the Roman Emperor Octavian (Augustus) in the year of 31 BC, to commemorate his victory against Antony and Cleopatra of Egypt at the naval battle of Actium at the mouth of the Ambracian Gulf. The city - most probably the largest in ancient Greece - was built between the gulf and the Ionian Sea. The city was named Nikopolis, which means ‘city of victory’. The city was also founded for military and trade needs. Nikopolis flourished in the two centuries which followed its foundation and it had several large public buildings (baths, stadium, theatre, odeon), while a 50 kilometers long aqueduct ( www.ipernity.com/doc/294067/47923442 ) provided it with fresh water from the mountains near Ioannina. In the second half of the 3rd century Greece became exposed to raids of barbarian tribes. The situation worsened in the 4th century, when Germanic tribes moved southwards and settled inside the northern border of the Roman Empire. These events coupled with earthquakes and pestilences led to a general decrease of the population which affected also Nikopolis. By the end of the 5th century its inhabitants realized they were too few to defend the whole city and they decided to fortify with new walls a section of the town. The decline of Byzantine Nikopolis was due to a series of raids by the Arabs in the 9th century and by the Bulgarians in the two following centuries. Eventually at the end of the 11th century the last inhabitants abandoned Nikopolis and founded Preveza. In 1798 French Revolutionary troops, stationed in Preveza by Napoleon, dug into the graves and ruins of ancient Nikopolis and looted various treasures. These were later taken by the troops of Ali Pasha, who defeated the French and their Greek allies. We visited the archaeological site - the first excavations were carried out in the period 1913-1926 - with its ruins, but to be honest we were not very impressed, as quite a lot were rather dilapidated. Although the old city wall was very astonishing.

Werdenberg - located in the canton of St. Gallen in northeastern Switzerland - was first mentioned in a document dated 1289. Originally it was a fortified town and one of only a few to be granted market rights. It is the only wooden medieval settlement in Switzerland to have retained its town-like character. Werdenberg has around forty houses which have remained unharmed by major fires. The medieval timber-frame settlement exhibits an extraordinary variety of building designs. Vertical timbered and half-timbered buildings, along with squared log cabins can be found there. Walking in the ‘city’ it looks more like an open air museum, although it is still inhabited and most of the houses are privately owned. With less than hundred inhabitants it is most probably the smallest city in Switzerland. The town is dominated by Castle Werdenberg on a top of a hill (PiP1), which has a museum. A second regional museum is housed in the so called Schlangenhaus (Snake House) in the settlement itself (PiP2).

Grivas castle is located just before reaching Lefkada island. Before the construction of the castle there was a muslim monastery on the same spot. That’s why it was called teke (gathering place for dervishes). The castle itself was built in 1806 by Ali Pasha of Ioannina; an Ottoman Albanian ruler who served as pasha of Epirus and the western parts of Thessaly and Greek Macedonia. The objective was to facilitate Ali’s attack against Lefkada. The plans of Ali were canceled in July 1807, when the French occupied the Ionian islands, after a treaty with the Russians. Soon after that, Ali Pasha gave the castle to the Grivas family, prominent in the area in the 18/19th centuries. In May 1821, during the Greek Revolution the castle was captured by the Greeks.

Schloss Steinfurt or Schloss Burgsteinfurt (Steinfurt Castle) is located on an artificial island in the AA River. The castle is the oldest structure of its kind in Westphalia. It was first mentioned in documents in the year 1129, being a small square tower on a hill. A little later the original construction was added. During the centuries the castle was often rebuilt or extended. The Burgsteinfurt Castle complex consists of three elements. The upper castle is the oldest part, where the castle owners still live. The lower castle houses outbuildings, like barns, a coach house, a gate house and apartments for servants. The third part of the complex is a watermill. In 1421 the male line of the Steinfurt family was broken and Castle Steinfurt passed to the representative of the Bentheim family. He and his descendants called themselves Counts of Bentheim and Steinfurt. During the Thirty Years’ War the castle changed owners and was heavily damaged several times. It was finally restored betreen 1706 and 1715. Later several new baroque buildings were added. The castle - Burgsteinfurt’s most important building - is still inhabited by the noble Bentheim-Steinfurt family and is not open foir public.

Puerto Madero - also known as Puerto Madero Waterfront - is the easternmost district of Buenos Aires, occupying a significant portion of the Río de la Plata riverbank. At the end of the 19th century, businessman Eduardo Madero was commissioned to ensure that large cargo ships could reach the port of Buenos Aires. In 1897 this new harbour was opened, but already ten years later the slow development and the appearance of larger ships made Puerto Madero superfluous. Puerto Madero is not only the story of the port, but also the development that the area has gone through since the 1990s. Local and foreign investors made it into an innovative and attractive part of the city. World-famous architects were allowed to redesign the area. Skyscrapers, luxury hotels and restaurants, offices and exclusive culture centers were built in Puerto Madero. Puerto Madero still features the marina of Buenos Aires with luxury yachts from the jet set. Along the docks old harbour cranes recall the times when Puerto Madero was a port. The elegant Puente de la Mujer (Women's Bridge) is definitely worth a picture (PiP 2). Puerto Madero has two nautical museums, one of them is housed in the Sarmiento , built in the 1890s ad a training vessel for the Argentine Navy (PiP 3)

The Igreja de São Domingos (Saint Domingos Church) was dedicated in 1241 and was - at one time - the largest church in Lisbon. Prior to the establishment of the Portuguese republic in 1910, the church hosted Portuguese royal weddings. It was once the home of the inquisition. Most probably no other church of Lisbon was damaged by so many disasters like the earthquakes of 1531 and 1755 (which destroyed most of the center of Lisbon). Rebuilding began quickly, but wasn't completed until 1807. In 1959 the church was devastated again after a fire broke out. The fire took more than six hours to extinguish and completely gutted the church, destroying the gilded altars and many important paintings and statues. In was not until 1994 before the church was reopened. The restoration left many signs of the fire in place. The present Igreja de São Domingos - a combination of sections of the original church with later reconstructions - has a somewhat haunting interior with its orange/red plastered walls and massive stone pillars with still traces of the fire. This ‘strange’ combination of ancient and more modern architecture made it (at least for us) quite an unique sight.

Behind the simple facade of the Igreja de São Roque (Church of Saint Roch) hides one of the most decorative churches of Lisbon. It is said that if you can only visit one church in Lisbon, then this church should be the choice. The Igreja de São Roque was originally a shrine which housed a relic from Saint Roch. He was canonized for his healing of plague victims. King Manuel I of Portugal believed that a relic from Saint Roch would protect Lisbon and he constructed a small shire to house the relic. The Jesuits made up a large sector of the Roman Catholic church and the Igreja de São Roque became their official home in the latter half of 16th century. Their devotion and money transformed the humble shrine of Sao Roque into one of the most opulent churches of Lisbon. The church was the first Jesuit church in Portugal and one of the earliest anywhere in the world. Their presence lasted roughly 200 years before they were permanently expelled from Portugal in 1759. The Igreja de São Roque , including the attached buildings and residences were confiscated. Nine years later the property was given to the Santa Casa da Misericórdia de Lisboa a Portuguese charitable organisation, whose original church and administrative buildings were destroyed by the devastating 1755 earthquake ( São Roque was one of the few buildings in the centre of the city that wasn’t damaged). This organisation still owns and operates the site today. The interior of the church - with its varied styles and different types of artworks that including gilt wood, glazed tiles, Florentine mosaics and a ornately painted ceiling - offers four altars and nine chapels. The most significant and beautiful chapel is the Capela de São João Baptista (Saint John the Baptist). The construction was commissioned by King João V in 1742 and is considered being a masterpiece of 18th century European art. The chapel is unique while it was constructed twice: first in Rome to be blessed by Pope Benedict XIV then dismantled, transported to Lisbon and rebuilt in the Igreja de São Roque . Main picture: Chapel of St. John the Baptist (r) and Chapel of Our Lady of Piety (l) PiP1: Chapel of St. John the Baptist PiP2: Chapel of the Most Holy Sacrament PiP3: Chancel/main altar

Humahuaca is a small town located in the colourful Quebrada de Humahuaca and not that far from the border with Bolivia. Near the main square - located on a hill - it features its landmark: the Monumento a los Héroes de la Independencia . This “Heroes of the Independence Monument” is an imposing sculpture group – work of Ernesto Soto Avendaño - was built to pay homage to the Northern Argentinian Army that fought a total of fourteen battles in Humahuaca during Argentine War of Independence (1819 – 1818). The monument (1950) is made from over 70 tons of bronze and represents the image of indigenous Pedro Socompa, who brought the news of independence. Others believe it’s actually Diego Viltipoco, the indigenous chief, who aided General Belgrano during the war. One can reach the monument by climbing a rather steep stairs. From the top one has a splendid panoramic view of Humahuaca and the surrounding mountains.

The Mosteiro dos Jerónimos (Jeronimos Monastery) is the most impressive symbol of Portugal's power and wealth during the Age of Discovery. Portugal’s King Manuel I gave orders for the construction of the monastery, which started in 1501. It was built on the site of a chapel where Vasco da Gama and his crew spent their last night in Portugal in prayer before leaving for India. Funding of this project came also from a 5% tax on many colony imports, meaning a massive amount of money was raised. The original time planned to construct the monastery was only eight years, but as the ‘pepper tax’ brought in greater wealth the plans grew and grew. The construction was ended in 1601 and the monastery was finally inaugurated by Felipe II, the Spanish ruler of the Iberian Union, in 1604. The architecture of the building was influenced by the Manueline style (named after the King Manuel I). Inspired by the sea voyages, the decorative style incorporated anchors, ropes, and other maritime symbols, in addition to religious symbols. Gothic and renaissance styles also influenced the building’s construction. The Church of Santa Maria is completely different from the rest. The temple has a single nave that is held up by six beautifully sculpted columns. The monks selected by King Manuel I to live in the monastery belonged to the Order of Saint Jerome (Hieronymites), so it was also known as the Hieronymites Monastery. The Jerónimos Monastery is the final resting place for King Manuel I and his family. Many famous Portuguese writers are also buried here, as well as world-renowned navigator Vasco da Gama. Due to the clever engineering design of small columns that support the vast roof of the church, the building could withstand the devastating 1755 earthquake. The majority of Lisbon’s large buildings collapsed, while Mosteiro dos Jerónimos had only slight damage. The monastery decayed during the abolition of the religious orders brought about by the protracted invasion by Napoleon and the entire church complex almost collapsed. Restoration work began after 1860 and was ‘finished’ mid-20th century; renovation and conservation are still going on. Due to its cultural and architectural significance, the Mosteiro dos Jerónimos was classified as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1983. Nowadays the monastery is one of the most prominent and visited touristy sights of Lisbon.

The Igreja de Santo António (Saint Anthony Church) is dedicated to Saint Anthony of Lisbon, also known as Saint Anthony of Padua, the patron saint of Portugal. The significance of this church originates from it being the location of the birthplace of Lisbon’s beloved Saint Anthony. A small underground chapel marks the location where Saint Anthony was born in 1195. Saint Anthony (or Fernando de Bulhões, as his real name was) was born in Lisbon in 1195. He was the son of a wealthy family. The site of the family house where Fernando was born, located very close to Lisbon Cathedral, was turned into a small chapel in the 15th century. This building, from which nothing remains, was rebuilt in the early 16th century, during the reign of King Manuel I. In 1730, under king João V, the church was rebuilt and redecorated. In the 1755 Lisbon earthquake the Santo António church was almost completely destroyed. It was fully rebuilt after 1767 in a Baroque-Rococo style, as it can be visited today. Igreja Santo António has a light and welcoming interior, which is adorned with statues and images of Saint Anthony’s life. The entire atmosphere is the complete contrast - and much more inviting - to the more or less sombre Sé, Lisbon’s cathedral ( www.ipernity.com/doc/294067/49372046 ), in which the Igreja de Santo António stands in the shadow of.

Alfama is located on one of the seven hills of Lisbon, between Castelo de São Jorge ( www.ipernity.com/doc/294067/49372046 ) and the Tagus river. Alfama is Lisbon's oldest neighbourhood. During the time of Moorish rule, the city consisted only of Alfama. The district became inhabited by the fishermen and the poor. Nowadays Alfama has shrugged off this grim reputation and has transformed into a fashionable and artisan district, but still retains its unique character and rich heritage. The name of the district also dates back from this period. Alfama comes from the Arabic al hamma which means “baths” or “hot fountains”. In the past there were hot springs at the foot of the hill. During the earthquake of 1755, the neighbourhood remained more or less untouched, which is why there are still many old buildings. Alfama has a romantic, picturesque appearance and is a maze of steep cobbled streets, narrow alleys, tiny squares and steep stairs. It offers also some miradouros (viewpoints) with stunning views over the houses and roofs towards the Tagus river.

The monastery of São Vicente de Fora (meaning: Monastery of St. Vincent Outside the Walls) was founded in 1147 by the first Portuguese king Dom Afonso Henriques for the Augustinian Order, as the result of a vow made to the martyr Saint Vincent in thanksgiving for the recovery of Lisbon from the Moor. He had built a simple temple and although many improvements were made during the first half of the 16th century, the building was very much decayed and in risk of ruin. King Filipe II of Spain, who had also become king of Portugal in 1580, decided that the church and monastery of São Vicente de Fora should be completely rebuilt. The works started in 1582 and the new church was consecrated in 1629. However the rest of the works went on until the 18th century. During the 1755 earthquake the buildings were severely damaged. It took almost a century before the monastery and the church were restored to their present state. The buildings are designed in an austere style, which is typical for the Portuguese architecture of the 16th century. The monastery with its two cloisters is beautifully decorated with hand-painted blue and white azulejos (tiles), showing panels based on the fables of La Fontaine.

The Cementerio Nuestra Senora del Carmen is located just outside Maimará, along Ruta 9 to Tilcara. Without any doubt it is the most remarkable and unusual cemetery of the Humahuaca Valley. The cemetery is situated around a hill top and offers vaults with curious architecture, picturesque tombs, a lot of crosses, indefinite sculptures and colourful dried and artificial flowers. From the slope of the cemetery one has a wonderful view towards the Paleta del Pintor with its wonderful colours ( www.ipernity.com/doc/294067/49367588 ).

The Sé de Lisboa (officially Igreja de Santa Maria Maior is Lisbon’s cathedral and the oldest church in the city. The Sé was built in the year of 1147, after Dom Afonso Henriques - the first king of Portugal - reconquered Lisbon from the Moors. It was located on the main mosque of Lisbon. This first building was completed between 1147 and the first decades of the 13th century in Late Romanesque style. Earthquakes have always been a problem for Lisbon and its cathedral. During the 14th and 16th centuries there were several of them, but the worst of all was the 1755 earthquake, which destroyed the Gothic main chapel along with the royal pantheon. The cloisters and many chapels were also ruined and the fire that followed. The cathedral was partially rebuilt and - in the beginning of the 20th century - was given the appearance that it has today after a profound renovation. The neoclassical decoration from outside and inside of the cathedral was removed to give the cathedral a more "mediaeval" appearance. The name Sé derives from Sedes Episcopalis , which simply means “bishop’s seat”. Nowadays this impressive and iconic religious building with its massive solid walls and two imposing clock towers is one of the most significant touristy sights of Lisbon. During our visit there were renovations of the ancient cloisters, so we couldn’t visit. PiP4 was taken from our apartment, which was located just next to the Sé .

Castelo de São Jorge (Saint George Castle) is located on a hill top - the most privileged area - of the old medieval citadel above the city of Lisbon. It consists of the castle, the ruins of the former royal palace, as well as a residential neighbourhood, which was home of the elite. The moated fortification with its towers and ramparts was built in the mid-11th century during the Moorish period. It is situated on the most inaccessible area on the top of a hill. Where most European castles intend to perform a residential role, the purpose of Castelo de São Jorge was to house military troops and - in case of a siege - the elite who lived in the citadel. After Dom Afonso Henriques conquered Lisbon in 1147, the castle began its golden age as a home for the royalty. The original buildings were modified and enlarged to accommodate the king, his court and the bishop. When Portugal became part of Spain in 1580, Castelo de São Jorge became an important military role, which continued until the early 20th century. After the devastating earthquake in 1755 the most substantial renovation work took place on the old citadel, with new buildings gradually covering over the older ruins. The castle and ruins of the former royal palace were rediscovered after major restorations between 1938 and 1940. Castelo de São Jorge regained its former magnificence and was opened to the public. Nowadays it is a National Monument and one of the most important touristic sights of Lisbon. (The main picture is taken from the observation deck of the Santa Justa Lift.)

Maimará is a small village in the heart of the Quebrada de Humahuaca , a UNESCO world Heritage site. The main characteristic of its landscape are the multicolored hills of the so called Paleta del Pintor (Painter’s Palette), an impressive geological formation made up of multicoloured - brownish, reddish, orangish, yelowish, ocher and pastel colours - hills reminiscent of a painting palette. A series of folds that correspond to the tertiary and quaternary periods.