AN UNUSUAL AQUARIUM

                 Probably the First of its Kind

     When in Auckland, New Zealand, I visited a most unusual aquarium. Since then I have been in other attractions where one can step on a moving walkway and just look—or get off for further study. But the history of this museum is unique and I bet is one of a kind.

     The whole aquarium is underground housed in old sewage tanks---the same storage tanks that once housed the city’s affluent !  Kelly Tarlton was an imaginative thinker. Once the storage tanks were no longer used he wanted to buy them from the city, but the city would not sell them. Everyone thought Kelly had gone loco.

     Finally after some time and negotiation the city agreed to lease the tanks to Kelly for $1 a year. He agreed, but insisted on a 1000 year lease. Kelly designed, planned  and supervised the building of the aquarium. Tons of junk had to be removed and extensive cleaning done before the construction could even begin.

     One can walk the aquarium or step on a moving walkway, as I chose to do, It was like being in a tunnel with fish all around  and on top of you. There were several varieties of rays swimming overhead and I had never seen the underside of a ray.  Big fish, small fish, all shapes and colors swam up, down and over you.  It was most amazing. Having visited many aquariums over the years this was the most unusual.  When I got to the end of the moving walkway I had to go again and again. My friend waited for me while made the third go around. Then I was satisfied.

      Known as New Zealand’s  Jacques Cousteau, Kelly died in 1985 at age 48, just a few weeks after the aquarium opened. It is said that diving contributed to his premature death.

     I believe this was the first aquarium where tubes of water with swimming fish were attempted. Over the years I have visited two other similar design aquariums in other areas, but above ground.

     In Auckland there was so much going on, to see and digest that claustrophobic me had no problem being underground!  

NIJMEGEN, HOLLAND

NIJMEGEN (ny men gen)

Romans had a military camp in what is now the city of Nijmegen, the oldest city in the Netherlands. Close to the German border, the city is situated on a range of hills near the River Waal. The surrounding area of hills, woods and polders, creates a varied countryside. The waterfront set against the backdrop of the city center is a splendid sight. Past and present gracefully mingle where historic buildings are interspersed with fine examples of modern architecture.

We were docked in the Waal River. Modern apartments lined the river front. We walked through flood gates that were installed after a 1982 flood.

Before starting up the hill our guide told us, “During Operation Market Garden in WW II, 20,000 paratroopers were dropped into the city to secure the bridges. It was a very foggy night, and with the troopers everywhere it was pretty much a fiasco, but they did secure one bridge. Later Allied bombers mistaking the city lights for Cologne bombed the city killing 3000 people and leveling one-third of the city.”

Everywhere we went we found a clock on each side of the towers in the cities /villages. The double eagle goes back to Roman times.

The hill was not a steep climb. We stopped at a wartime Jewish memorial at the equivalent of a small traffic circle on the narrow cobbled streets.

With a university and a higher educational vocational school much of its 160,000 residents are young.

Stopping at St Steven’s Church, it was explained, “Notice there is no statuary on the church façade. When all the churches were being destroyed the priest removed all the statues and buried them. Years later they were recovered and put on the school/ monastery across the street. See the twelve apostles standing proud there.”

Construction on St Steven’s Church began around 1254. The building started in Romanesque style but was completed in Gothic style. The Renaissance-style tower was built in the mid fourteenth century and has dominated the city skyline for centuries.

Along the way the guide stopped in front of a coffee shop with sign of a marijuana leaf over the door. I immediately recalled on my first trip to Amsterdam that we were told, in Holland pot and soft drugs are legal. But beware--you buy coffee in a café and pot in a coffee shop, where there is no coffee.

In the pedestrian square we stopped by a statue across from the weigh house. The statue is of a young orphaned girl who lived with a stepmom and sister in the woods. Each market day she was sent to market to sell goods they had scrounged in the forest. One day she was told not to return until everything was sold.

Going through the woods a highwayman robbed her of the goods. She sat down and cried. Then suddenly the devil appeared and gave her money. She ran off and lived with him for seven years. She returned to the village one day to see a play that turned out to be a religious one, and she realized what a sin she had committed. She went to the priest to confess and was sentenced to wear a chain around each leg until they fell off. Seven years later the chains fell off, and she spent the rest of her life as a nun.

The Dutch seem to have stories or legends for many of their statues.

Behind the statue is the ornate Gothic 15^th century town hall. I understand the inside is not remarkable.

After the walking tour we spent some time wandering the huge Saturday market that extended for blocks. Showers were intermittent, so we scooted into a store or two along the way to wait them out. The main street ran parallel to the harbor, so at any perpendicular up street we had a nice view of the harbor below.

One vendor gave us a stroopwafel sample. They were yummy, and we each bought a package to bring home. I actually managed to get them home unbroken to share with friends.

Nijmegen is an interesting and sweet little town where we found very friendly people.

KOBLENZ, GERMANY

                                                    A Charming City

      Koblenz is one of the most beautiful and oldest towns in Germany with over 2000 years of history. Surrounded by four low mountain ranges, the picturesque old city has an abundance of cultural monuments and historic buildings, as well as many cosy lanes and narrow alleyways. Cobbled river promenades and lovely squares are a real treat. In the historic center narrow lanes and sidewalk cafes are abundant. (English spelling replaces the K with a C.)

     Originally the city was in the shape of a triangle as it is at the confluence of the Rhine and Mosel Rivers, while the third side provided fortification for the medieval city. The Mosel is spanned by a 1344 Gothic freestone bridge with 14 arches, and two modern road bridges as well as two railway bridges. The arched bridge is built over Roman supports. It was damaged during WW II but repaired and rebuilt. We were docked within sight of this bridge and walked down to check it out.

    Our walking guide told us, “Koblenz was one of the military posts established by Drusus about 8 BC; the city celebrated its 2000th anniversary in 1992. This Roman town became very important in the 13^th century as an important link for European trade. During WW II the city was heavily bombed and 87% of the city destroyed because munitions were manufactured here in addition to it being an important transportation center. A plaque in the pedestrian walkway says 3772 flights dropped 10,000 tons of bombs in a short time destroying 15,000 of the 25,000 homes. Over 1000 people died and many more were injured. The old city was rebuilt using many of the old facades.”

    Parts of the old city wall, which contained 21 towers, are still visible. As we walked I thought how the colorful and cheerful window flower boxes were reminiscent of Switzerland. Many towers were visible in the skyline, many with onion domes. Except for a wee bit of wood trim, the houses are brick or stucco with slate roofs. Typical in this part of the world, most of the buildings were joined with no right of way between.

Policeman greeting a local vendor

     We detoured into the small area in front of the Mittelrhein Museum, a late Gothic building erected between 1419-1430. Poised above the entry door and below the clock is the augenroller (eye roller). I was intrigued with how his eyes seem to move around as you viewed him from different angles.

    Jesuits arrived in 1580 to ensure the survival of Catholicism. The entrance way and door to the Jesuit college is the only original part of the building.

     Manhole covers are seldom of interest, but leave it to me to find an unusual one The French occupied this area for twenty years. It was home to French refugees during the French revolution. Of course only males were here and eventually some of them married German girls. Their offspring were called schangel. The brass covers in the city depict a mischievous little boy.  Koblenz also has many comical and descriptive statues around town.

    The Church of Our Lady demonstrated three architectural styles. The twin towers were Romanesque, the chapel Gothic and the onion-shaped domes Baroque. The stained glass windows on the side of the church were an unusual scallop shape.

    The Basillica of St. Castor, founded in 836, has four towers. The present Romanesque building was completed in 1208 and the vaulted Gothic roof dates to 1498. The French erected a fountain in 1812 in front of the church including an inscription to commemorate Napoleon’s invasion of Russia.

Koblenz is a charming and interesting city and certainly is worthy of a visit.

AVIGNON

                                     An Ancient Walled City
        We boarded the high speed TGV train for the trip to Avignon, the capital of Provence. We were seated upstairs. There is a specific protocol for riding the train. First, one is very quiet, any talking is done at whisper level. Talking on a cell phone is considered rude---yea! If a phone did vibrate, the person immediately got up and left the car. Doors were not automatic; one had to push a button to open them.

            The seats were comfortable for the 2 ½ hour ride to Avignon. Our guide gave us a 10 minute warning so we could be ready to disembark. European trains do not stay in the station long. The train transfer was quick and easy and in less than 15 minutes all the luggage had been transferred and the bus was pulling out of the parking lot.

            Olive trees, grapes and lavender fields decorate the outskirts of the city. A row of cypress trees makes for a good wind break for crops.    

            At Old Town we boarded a trolley-car train for a ride inside the walled city. Inside the ancient wall the area is amazingly big, and walking is the best way to get around the cobbled, narrow, winding, one-way streets. Situated on the left bank of the Rhone River, Avignon is a wonderfully well preserved ancient walled city of history, refinement and culture. Twisting streets turn around ancient buildings filled with modern shops in Old Town, all within the three miles of the medieval wall of the ancient fortress. The wall is complete and has 12 towers and 14 entrances.

The city is often referred to as the French Vatican or City of Popes because the pope moved here from Rome in 1309, and for the next 70 years Avignon was the center of European religion and art.  During the 14^th century the presence of popes drew hordes of princes, dignitaries, poets and raiders to the city.

For centuries the city has been the major art center of France as well as the economic, administrative and cultural capital of Provence and Camargue. It is one of the most active and beautiful cities in France. Thanks to its architectural and artistic heritage, this old city is one of the most important gothic ensembles in Europe.

During the summer the city of 90,000 is crowded, but the many spectacular monuments, museums, decorated buildings, ancient churches, chapels and convents are worth a visit and coping with the masses.

             Only four of the original 12 arches of the 11^th century Benezet Bridge remain. In the old city when a merchant set up shop, the street was named for the type of shop, ie: carpenter street. The 18^th century theater is now a museum. The synagogue is round with a dome as the architect was influenced by mosque construction. The Palais of Papel, city hall, cafés, boutiques and a carousel are all around the main plaza.

            I walked down to the Palais but did not climb the many steps to go in it. It was a very warm afternoon and the line to enter was in the sun. I returned to the shade of a tree where I left my friend and bought an interesting mint ice cream cone. It was a bright chartreuse shade of green.

            Avignon was just a stopover for us. We saw a lot in a limited amount of time, but it is a city that deserves some time to really see and enjoy.

HELSINKI, FINLAND

                                            The Capitol City

       Often referred to as the Daughter of the Baltic, Helsinki, established in 1550, is a natural seaport on the Baltic Sea at the southern tip of Finland. A fountain at the waterfront square portrays this image. The city spreads out onto islands, peninsulas, and along coves where boats of all descriptions navigate. The sea is an integral part of the city. The city grew up around the natural harbor.

     The city has wide streets and many squares and parks. One of the worlds’ first planned municipalities, it is noted for its 19^th century neoclassical architecture. Finland’s busiest port city has the largest urban concentration in the country, with a combined population of about a million. With no medieval past, the city was built to supply the fortress. Today, the city is the center of Finnish politics, economics and culture.

     Helsinki is a low rise-city, but the buildings although only 4--5 stories high are enormous. The last major fire was in 1808. Brick buildings were constructed after 1920. We found the city very clean; there was no litter anywhere. Sidewalks were often granite slab, but many of the streets and squares are cobbled.

       Although smaller than other Scandinavian capitals, Helsinki is Finland’s largest city but still maintains a distinctive small-town ambiance. Instead of the ornate and grandiose buildings of many Baltic and Scandinavian cities it is city of understated functional architectural design with the tallest building reaching only 12 stories. The stone pastel yellow and blue buildings frequently have white trim and columns. The architecture traces the domination of neighboring Sweden and Russia, but reflects a reverence for nature. It is the world’s second most northern capital, after Reykjavik. Finns have perfected living with nature and exult in their unspoiled land. 

            Summer in Helsinki begins in May and lasts until mid-September. The average summer temperature for day and night is around 60 degrees. On hot days the temperature can rise to the high 80s. Warmest in July, it is slightly cooler off the coast. The Helsinki summer is bright white. During the summer equinox in late-June there are no less than 19 hours of daylight between sunrise and sunset. Temperatures cool significantly towards the end of September, and the days grow noticeably shorter with the impending arrival of winter.     

     Throughout its 450-year history, Helsinki has existed in the crosscurrents of the East and West. The colorful layers of history can be seen everywhere.

      Walking or biking is the best way to appreciate the city’s cafés, parks, market and islands. The city is very pedestrian friendly, but the drivers are not! Each morning wooden stands with colorful awnings spring to life at the bustling Market Square. Many Finns have country cottages and go there in summer. In winter the city buzzes with theater, political institutes and 20,000 university students.

      One of the main attractions in Helsinki is Suomenlinna, the mammoth fortress, built in 1748, by the Swedes. 

See post 6-10-12 Suomenlinna and more history