Warsaw Riverside: Passing an Interesting Bicycle

Passed the interesting-looking bicycle above at some kind of cafe bar during my recent, long walk alongside the river Vistula in Warsaw.

Found a lot of the new development at the riverside quite skilfully/tastefully done:

In these pictures, I was heading towards the bridge that leads to the National Football Stadium:

Finishing Oliver Twist

Ended up really enjoying 'Oliver Twist' as the action heated up in the second half of the novel.

Sykes' murder of poor Nancy is horrendous, but even a pure brute like Sykes is forced to suffer the torment of guilt, as all humans are made from some degree of conscience. The reader also observes that karma lies in wait for the wrong-doer, as Sykes accidentally hangs himself in a desperate escape attempt from the crowds of Londoners in his pusuit.

Also found the narrative focus upon Fagin's last few days locked up before his execution interesting. Guess that any inmate would lose his/her senses knowing that his/her life would be extinguished soon. Couldn't quite work out if Dickens expresses sympathy or scorn towards "The Jew" (Fagin) near the end of the novel, especially when Fagin refuses to kneel down and pray with Oliver.

Was funny to see that karma also laid in wait for Mr. Bumble and his battleaxe wife, as they end up seeing out their days in the workhouse. When I think twice about this, I'm tempted to sympathise a bit with Mr. Bumble, because he seems to have been more of a coward and social role-player, rather than being clearly bad which Mrs Bumble certainly was.

It was also sad (but predictable) to see Oliver discover that his small friend from the workhouse, young Dick, had died. While expecting some kind of happy ending in 'Oliver Twist', I realised that it couldn't be extended as far as Oliver meeting up with young Dick alive again. Of course, the magic of 'Oliver Twist' may be viewed as being in the early chapters of the novel with Dickens' narrative focus on the horrors of the workhouse.

Since finishing 'Oliver Twist' a couple of weeks ago, I've started reading the collection of D.H. Lawrence stories shown in the picture above. Have read 'The Virgin and the Gypsy' several times before, so I've started off by digging into 'Love Among the Haystacks', a typical Lawrentian piece about the polarity between the repressive-type state of self-consciousness and the sensual release of human spontaneity. I guess that like many people, I view DH Lawrence as the spiritual godson of Thomas Hardy, as he kind of thematically takes over where Hardy left off.

Warsaw: Passing the University Library Building

Whenever I pass the Warsaw University Library building, I cannot resist taking a few shots of the place.

On my recent riverside walk, I managed to get the reflection of the wonderful College of Law building (on the right in the picture above) on quite a few of my shots of the Warsaw University library building.

Love it when the reflections of beautiful buildings run into other impressive buildings.

As usual, I tried to get pictures of the Warsaw University building from many different angles:

Within Temptation Live at Warsaw Torwar 27th October 2018

Was happy to catch up with Within Temptation at Warsaw Torwar last night.

As expected, the visuals were incredible (really like the way Within Temptation recognise that a concert is an audio-visual experience), especially for the new tunes at the start of the set:
 

'The Reckoning' is my favourite of the new tunes, it's a real grower:

Of course, the older tunes ('Stand My Ground'; 'The Promise'; 'Mother Earth'; 'Shot in the Dark'; 'Faster' etc.) all went down a treat too.

Again, the whole audio-visual experience was truly amazing:

It was difficult to pick a tune of the night, but if I had to, it would probably be 'Paradise (What About Us?)':

And the visual of the night? Again another difficult choice but I'd go for that which accompanied 'Stairway to the Skies', a sublime audio-visual end to the gig:
 

Warsaw: Passing the College of Law

During my walk alongside the river Vistula the other week, I was always going to take shots of the stunning College of Law building which lies at the back of the big Warsaw University Library building.

Having come across this place before, I knew it was well worthy of shots from several different angles:

It really is a wonderful building, one of my favourites in Warsaw:

Warsaw: A Funny-Looking Structure

This funny-looking structure allowed me to get some better views during my recent walk alongside the river Vistula in Warsaw.

Bradford on Avon: Holy Trinity Church

We came across Holy Trinity church just before encountering St. Lawrence's church (dating back to Saxon times) during our 2-3 hour stop in Bradford on Avon (waiting for the train to Dorchester).

Like St. Lawrence's church, I found Holy Trinity incredibly beautiful, and felt compelled to find out a bit about the place when I got back to Warsaw, Poland, where I live.

Have just quickly read that Holy Trinity dates back to Norman times (about 1150), although the tower and spire were built in the late 15th century.

Just wish we'd been able to see Holy Trinity (and St. Lawrence's church) inside.

Bury (Lancashire): The Yesteryear Steps

Always get a sense of yesteryear when encountering these steps near the Trackside pub and steam railway station in Bury town centre.

Guess that at some point in time, these steps led up to (near) the beautiful Unitarian church which was knocked down and replaced by a featureless building built nearby - too much of this kind of thing has happened in Bury over the years.

Warsaw: Bar on a Boat

A bar on a boat that I passed during my walk alongside the river Vistula in Warsaw the other week.

Killing Joke Live at Warsaw Stodoła 20th October 2018

Was a long time coming, but finally got round to seeing Killing Joke last night.

Seemed to be an interesting mix of people at the gig, kind of split between half who had a deep reverence for the band, and another half who were curiosity-seekers like myself.

Anyway, I quite enjoyed the Killing Joke set, especially the tunes I was familiar with ('Love Like Blood'; 'Eighties'; 'Requiem' etc.).

Found Jaz Coleman's voice incredible (clear and powerful):

First thought that I might get round to seeing Killing Joke in the early 1980s when I saw them on TV playing live on The Tube (an interesting live music programme in Britain back then). Little did I know it would take 35 years or so to catch them live.

Warsaw: Passing Another Stunning Bridge

Passed this stunning bridge (think its the one from the Old Town over to Warsaw Zoo) while continuing my walk alongside the river Vistula. While passing underneath the bridge, I had to marvel as I looked upwards.

My Mental Jukebox Part 14

Don't speak a word of Icelandic, but the sheer beauty and melody of this tune by Arstidir has been dominating my mental jukebox for a few weeks now.

Have recently started learning how to speak Irish Gaelic, hope to do the same with Icelandic language one day.

An Idyllic-Looking Cottage

Came across this idyllic-looking, small cottage, possibly some kind of gatekeeper's place, while looking for Winterborne Came, just outside Dorchester.

Bury (Lancashire): Why I Like the Two Wetherspoons

I like going in both of the Wetherspoons in Bury. Both offer really good Real Ale; good food (especially the one near the Interchange); and a relaxed atmosphere for a drink during the day.

Like all the other Wetherspoons I've been in around the country (e.g. the two in Canterbury, Kent and one in Dorchester, Dorset), both Bury Wetherspoons also offer a wonderful sense of Englishness/ Britishness, something which is often devalued in this day and age.

Warsaw Old Town at Sundown

While walking down near the river Vistula, I got this kind of atmospheric shot of Warsaw Old Town.

Marnhull: Passing the Former Brewery

Passed this wonderful building on the way to Tess Cottage in Marnhull. Have just read somewhere on the Internet that it used to be the village brewery.

Kotek Curled Up in a Box

Nice shot of Kotek curled up in a box on the window sill.

Autumnal sunshine still remains in abundance, but Kotek seems to be gaining his winter coat quickly.

Warsaw: The Riverside Dwarf

Loved this dwarf that I passed during my lengthy walk alongside the river Vistula in Warsaw last week.

The picture below gives a much better idea of just how tiny the dwarf is:

Galway: My Final Shots

The last shots from my early summer visit to Galway city, starting with an excavation site in the city centre above.

Was curious about the statue (just after Claddagh Quay) below, and through doing a quick Internet search, I've just found out that it is dedicated to a Dominican preacher called Thomas Nicholas Burke (1830-1882):

Encountered the house below, which had long protest messages attached to its gates, while walking up to Salthill:

The Galway Rovers social club, near Claddagh Quay, seemed like a good place to have a few pints:

And Eyre Square contained a few interesting-looking things:

Think I read somewhere that the statue below is dedicated to an Irish regiment that fought for the British army during the Crimean War:

Alas, after two wonderful days, it was time to catch the bus to Shannon Airport for my plane to Manchester (and onto my hometown of Bury, Lancashire):

Preston: A Wonderful House

Loved this wonderful, tall house that I passed in Preston (not far from the train station car park and the park next to the river).

Nearing and Entering Puddletown

The house above signalled that we weren't far from entering Puddletown having already visited Waterston Manor and Druce Farm (seeing the model sites/settings for Thomas Hardy's 'Far from the Madding Crowd').

The block of houses below signalled that we weren't far from a small shop in Puddletown that sells wonderful steak pasties: