djchall’s Neighborhood

I arrived in Sydney last Sunday and took some photos on a walk around the Botanic Gardens out to Macquarrie Point. The opera house, of course:

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This is what I woke up to this morning in Paris:

Of course it all melted during the day!

land of free internet in the hotels....
Here is the view from my room in the Shiodome Royal Park Hotel

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I am on Cyprus, visiting the university in Nicosia, and got a chance to walk around the old city on Sunday - it is fascinating, a mix of decaying stone houses and recently restored ones.

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Around the green line, there are a fair number of derelict buildings. But there is now a crossing point into the Turkish side where you just show your passport, and lots of people were going back and forth. They clearly hope to reunite the city. Here is a photo of the crossing:

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There are lots more photos at Picasa

I haven't posted for a while, so here are some photos of a trip a couple of weeks ago to teach in a Summer School in Puglia, Italy.

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Yesterday was the quarterfinal of the European championship between the Netherlands and Russia. Maastricht was very decorated for the occasion, and there were crowds of people who came in to watch at the many pubs and cafes.  Sadly, the Dutch lost in overtime. Here are some pix:

Thursday night a friend and I went to a gala concert at Wigmore Hall (London) featuring Bryn Terfel - his voice is almost too big for the hall, but it was great fun. First half English songs, second half Schubert and some Celtic standards like Danny Boy and All through the Night (in Welsh, of course). I took one shaky photo:

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