The Castle; Taken on December 20, 2016 at Sümeg
Sümeg is a castle town north of Lake Balaton in Hungary. It was built in the late 13th century by King Bela IV. It was gifted to the Catholic church by King Stephen V. It’s been nicely remodeled, and is now the site of renaissance faire style events. Here are some pics from within:
In the dungeon (i.e. the várbörtön)
Medieval warfare, check out those pointy boots
The kitchen
The Bishop’s Quarters
Taken at the Jantar Mantar, Delhi on December 16, 2016
The Jantar Mantar are astronomical clocks / calendars. Five of them were built in early 18th century India by order of Maharaja Jai Singh II. The others are in Jaipur, Varanasi, Ujjain, and Mathura. The one at Jaipur is said to be the most impressive, and I can attest that it’s more impressive than the complex in Delhi. However, I’ve only visited the two. What we read of the Varanasi one didn’t make it sound worth the trip, even though we were in the area of it. (It’s atop one of the buildings near the main ghat.) I haven’t been to the other two cities, but I’ve heard that not all of the Jantar Mantar remain intact, so they may just be ruins.
When we were visiting the location in Jaipur, a guide asked: “Do you believe in these things, astrology and astronomy?”
To which the natural response is: “That’s like asking whether I believe in ghosts and gravity.”
At any rate, if you are into science these sites are worth your time.
Taken in Vasco da Gama, Goa in October of 2016
Vasco da Gama
Panjim, Goa
Taken in December of 2014 in Budapest, in front of St. Stephen’s Basilica (i.e.Szent István-bazilika)
