Niece RMG has been returned to her stomping grounds in Madrid. Rumor has it of perturbations and disquiet among the barbarian, nomadic tribes of the far North of Europe. We have been put on alert to duty to defend the Alicante/Elche Airport tomorrow.
In the meantime there were another mass number of pictures to be processed, organized, and posted. We will be doing this in two posts. The first...
Daylight, Port & Construction
We arrive in the old quarter of Cartagena, do a bang-up job of parking in the classic European Parking Garage from Hell, and are able to check into our hotel AND get our room an hour before it is scheduled. Then it is on the streets to start shooting.
"Listen. I understand there is a world renowned blogging couple taking pictures here today. Make sure that sun goes down on schedule. Hear me?"
On one of the main plazas
Down by the waterfront looking into the city
Cartagena is on the 'cruise circuit'
The Ancient Enemy
Throngs of Cruise Shippers returning to their hive just before the ship sails off
Photographer and Companion moping until they are gone
Finally
On our harbor tour there was a ton of history
It has been and remains an important port for the Spanish Navy
There are a bizillion (well maybe a bit fewer than a bizillion...but a lot!) of fortifications built from the late Middle Ages through the Modern period to defend the harbor.
Two Lighthouses. Green marks the entrance. Red the exit
Birds in the Light
Can we talk about architectural scaffolding?
After many disappointments this trip, the MOTHER LODE of all architecture scaffolding was found here in Cartagena. I swear, half of the town is being rebuilt. You would wander a street, look at the building front and realize it was just a facade for a complete tear down behind it. I did some research afterwards and a number of factors are driving this. First, the overall economy and government support for reconstruction have led to a boom in the building to support the new tourist related economy. That combined with strict rules for preserving historic architecture result in the process of maintaining the exterior and building a modern building behind it.
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