Photography – Page 19 – Ripple Effects

Petra: Indiana Jones On Location

I’m still travelling in far off places, but just a few pictures to whet the appetite of those who have been so eagerly waiting. Thanks for your patience. I’ve been longing to share with you all my experience, the sights and sounds of distant lands, obscure to North Americans but definitely very popular places to explore for those in other parts of the world. I feel like a wanderer in the Tower of Babel, hearing a myriad of unknown languages, not only from the natives of those lands, but from the crowds of visitors around me.

The most amazing sight so far I must say is Petra, the city carved out of rocks, right in the red mountains of southern Jordan, about 3 hour’s drive southwest of the capital city Amman. Petra was the land of the Edomites, descendants of Esau, twin brother of Jacob in the Old Testament of the Bible. The ancient city was first constructed by the Nabataeans, and later came under Roman rule. Earthquake and flooding had destroyed much of the city and it remained obscure for centuries until rediscovered by a Swiss explorer in 1812.

The ancient ruins of Petra was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1985, and named one of the New Seven Wonders of the World in 2007. Excavation has been an international effort towards which Brown University’s archaelogy and anthropology departments have contributed substantially. Follow this link to their fabulous website http://www.brown.edu/Departments/Anthropology/Petra/

Petra was the location for parts of the film Indiana Jones and The Last Crusade (1989). You might recognize the famous facade of the ancient temple (The Treasury) which is the entrance to this amazing city in the rocks.

(First a word about COPYRIGHT: I’ve travelled far, walked great distances and ridden on a donkey to take the following pictures, PLEASE DO NOT COPY.)

Entering the red mountain region:

A glimpse through the crack:

Beholding the real wonder:

The City carved out of rocks:

Again, photos taken by Arti of www.rippleeffects.wordpress.com

More to come in future posts. Thanks for waiting.

Batman Sequel: The Dark Knight on Location in Hong Kong

From Beowulf to Batman, we are a people of hero seekers, real or imaginary. Our incessant quest seems to be even more acute in recent years as Hollywood plays a major role in fanning the flame. The latest frenzy is in Hong Kong, where the new Batman movie The Dark Knight is filming on location.

To be released in July, 2008, the Batman sequel will again feature Christian Bale as Bruce Wayne, Michael Caine as Alfred and Morgan Freeman, Lucius Fox. Reportedly, Jack Nicholson was furious to find out that Heath Ledger will be replacing him as The Joker. For the first time, Batman is going to venture out Gotham City, and the Metropolis of Hong Kong is the very location (plus Chicago and England) director Christopher Nolan finds most suitable for the superhero’s new crime fighting scenes to take place.

Thanks to my Hong Kong correspondent, I received these fresh photos, taken near the filming location in Hong Kong Central. Crowds gathered to watch from a distance, many eagerly taking pictures of the filming. The insatiable quest for the hero figure is indeed universal:

The International Finance Centre (IFC), where Batman reportedly will jump off:

Filming inside the famed Central-Mid-Level Escalator Walkway System:

Photos copyright: IPTV, November, 2007.

Used by Permission.

Update Jan. 22, 2008: Heath Ledger was found dead in his Manhattan apartment today. He was 28.

Landscape, Seascape, and Mindscape

“For oft when on my couch I lie
In vacant or in pensive mood,
They flash upon that inward eye
Which is the bliss of solitude;
And then my heart with pleasure fills,
And dances with the daffodils.”

– William Wordsworth

What can be retained in travels are the images etched in the mind…the thoughts and feelings they had evoked. As time passes, we can still relive those moments as we extract the gems from our mindscape.

These pilings once formed the foundations of houses built on the waters of Astoria. They are now resting posts for cormorants and gulls. Once useful for human settlement, they now blend in the natural seascape like mazes for the birds…still offering a haven of rest despite their weathered and beaten forms.

The old and the new can co-exist in the elasticity of the mind. The human imagination and creativity can reach boundless horizons, and connect timeless landscapes in the mind’s eye.

Trolley in Astoria, Oregon

Frank Gehry’s Disney Concert Hall in L.A.

Photos taken by Arti of www.rippleeffects.wordpress.com,

Category: Photography

Petra: Indiana Jones On Location

Batman Sequel: The Dark Knight on Location in Hong Kong

Landscape, Seascape, and Mindscape

Frank Gehry’s Disney Concert Hall in L.A.

To read more about Frank Gehry, the architect who designed the Disney Concert Hall, Click Here.