Friday, August 27, 2010

From one end of Speyer's Maximilianstrasse to the other (Photo-essay)


A couple of blog entries back, a few readers wrote in the comments thread of being happy to see Hong Kong-centric entries again after my marked German focus of the past few weeks. But the fact of the matter is that close to one month after my German holiday, I still have quite a few thoughts about, and photos from, that trip that I want to share... including the following photos taken on a day trip to the quiet town of approximately 50,000 inhabitants and a UNESCO World Heritage-listed cathedral that is Speyer:-

After arriving by train into Speyer,
my German friend took me directly to climb

the tower of the town's Altportel (Old Gate),
parts of which date back to the 13th century

...from whose top grand views could be had --
including this one of the Maximilianstrasse

and, at the end of that street, Speyer Cathedral

As previously noted, I found Speyer
to be
an unexpectedly quiet and uncrowded town

However, this is not to say I disliked the place --
and, in particular, I really liked the Altportel

and how it inspired me to take artistic photos

A view through an old window of the Altportel
that got me thinking of historical times

and maybe also fairytale places


Puppet Ponyo posing on Speyer's Maximilianstrasse
(after heading out of the cathedral fresh from
an organ music concert that evening)


An unobscured-by-Ponyo view of Speyer Cathedral

Close-up shot of the front of the impressively
monumental Romanesque cathedral
that is
the largest Romanesque edifice in Germany

6 comments:

Horsoon said...

I like your pics in this post (of course this facinating post of Speyer included)!

YTSL said...

Hi Horsoon --

Thanks. A great compliment coming from a talented photographer like yourself. :)

Unknown said...

I'm just catching up with your blog, love the ponyo cameos. Ha ha :)

YTSL said...

Hi Olivia --

Glad that you're catching up on my blog posts -- and love the Ponyo cameos. Re the latter: yes, there are more to come! :b

Marta said...

These picture really show the beauty of the city. I know so little about Germany and your posts are starting to get me interested in it. And it looks like Ponyo enjoyed the visit.

YTSL said...

Hi once more Marta --

Before anything else: thanks much for checking out more than just my Photo Hunt entries. :)

Re Germany: I was surprised at how off the tourist path much of it -- particular outside of Munich and Berlin -- seemed and have to say that makes for a good part of its charm. :)