- Christmas decorations
Bastejkalna Park and the wonderful Christmas decorations. - Christmas decorations
Bastejkalna Park and the wonderful Christmas decorations. The key is the symbol of Riga. - Pilsētas kanāls
Latvian National Opera in the background. And yes, the canal is frozen. - Christmas decorations
The inside of the moon :-) - Christmas decorations
A giant moon in Bastejkalna parks. - Esplanāde
One of the many parks in Riga. - Statue of Felicita Pauļuka
A statue of Felicita Pauļuka by Lea Dāvidova-Medene (1921-1986). Statue is in the National Museum of Art. - Cathedral of the Nativity of Christ
The Orthodox Cathedral was built in 1876-1884. - The Christmas market
Plenty of bunnies in the Christmas market. This one was in Esplanade. - View of Riga
View from the St. Peter's tower. Yes, the visibility was pretty bad. One can hardly see the Vanšu Bridge. - Riga centre
Another wonderful Jugenstil/Art Nouveau house. - Riga centre
Some lovely old houses in the city centre. - The Cat's House
Well, here I regretted not carrying my proper camera. Because I couldn't zoom in to the statue of the cat on top of the roof. - A closed bar
A closed bar, opposite the Powder Tower. - Three brothers (Trīs Brāļi)
The Three Brothers are these three houses: the right one is gothic (15th century), the middle one is from the 17th, and the left one from the 18th century. - Romatic cafe
A romatic cafe behind St. Jacob's Catholic Cathedral (Rīgas Svētā Jēkaba Katedrāle) - Rīgas Doms - Riga Cathedral
This Lutheran church was founded in 1211, but (re)built several times, so it's got Romanesque, Gothic and Baroque elements. And there was this guy tuning the piano, so I had my own private concert! Pure magic. - Rīgas Doms - Riga Cathedral
The cloister of the Dome. The courtyard was closed, however, due to snow. - A random armadillo
Armadillo by Liene Mackus. - House of Blackheads
Originally built in 1334 for the city's guilds. This wonderful building was bombed in WWII, and completely rebuilt in 1999. - Mentzendorff house
Built in 1695. - Lago di Levico
- Lago di Levico
The calm lake after the storm. - Valgadena
On the road towards Levico Terme, just for a short break at the end of the holidays. - Sunset in Baleal
- Ilha de Fora
Another sunset in Baleal. Just beautiful. - Claustro de Santa Bárbara
And one of the many cloisters in the Monastery, this one was built in the 16th century. - Cistern
One of the many cisterns in the Monastery. - Refectory
Pulpit in the Refectory, which was build in 1535-1536. Royal coat of arms... and some strange faces. - Janela do Capítulo
The famous Manueline Window of the Chapter House (1510-1513). - Claustro Principal
A very 16th century Renaissance cloister. - Convento de Cristo in Tomar
São Cristóvão - Saint Christopher (1484-1500) - Convento de Cristo in Tomar
The Romanesque round church was built in the second half of the 12th century by the Knights Templar. - Convento de Cristo in Tomar
A lot of renovation was going on, so we entered through some side doors. This was the first thing that greeted us after climbing the stairs. At 40 deg C outside, these rooms were at least a bit cooler. - Capelas Imperfeitas
King Manuel I dedicated this portal to King Edward and the motto "Leauté faray tam yaserei" means "I will always be loyal". - Capelas Imperfeitas
- Capelas Imperfeitas
The portal was originally Gothic and transformed by Mateus Fernandes into Manueline style (1509). - Capelas Imperfeitas
Ah, the famous Unfinished Chapels, commissioned in 1437 by Dom Duarte. - Capelas Imperfeitas
Insanely beautiful detail. - Monastery of Saint Mary of the Victory
What a magnificent cathedral! - Claustro Real
- Monastery of Saint Mary of the Victory
What an insane attention to detail! - Founder's Chapel
The chapel was built in 1426-1434 by Huguet to become the first royal pantheon in Portugal. - Monastery of Saint Mary of the Victory
The monastery was built to celebrate the 1385 victory over the Castilians. The church was built between 1386 and 1517. - Mosteiro de Santa Maria de Alcobaça
Founded in 1153 by Afonso Henriques and built in 1178-1252. The facade was added later, of course. - Mosteiro de Santa Maria de Alcobaça
This is the oldest gothic building in Portugal, and still the largest church in the country. - Cloister of Silence
- Mosteiro de Santa Maria de Alcobaça
Some old inscriptions on the cloister walls. - Chapter House
Statue of S. Gregorivs Magn in the Chapter House. - Gargoyle in the cloister
A rather interesting gargoyle. - Cloister of Silence
This cloister was built under King Dinis I (1261-1325). The Manueline top floor is from early 16th century. - The kitchen
What a kitchen! Built and covered with tiles in the 18th century. A channel carried water from Alcoa river directly through the kitchen (!) to get fresh water and fish. - Virgin Mary and child
I really like the visible hairstyle of Saint Mary. Unusual to see her hair so long and so curly. - Mosteiro de Santa Maria de Alcobaça
Refectory, where the monks had their daily meals. - Fountain Hall
Gothic fountain hall in the cloister. - Hotel garden
Wonderful tiny garden of our hotel (Silver coast). - Black sand
This is the blackest beach I've seen. And I've seen quite a few, which claim to be black... Not to mention that compass does not work on this beach. I mean... it works ... but the direction it points to is very locally determined. - Laghetto di Terranera
An artificial lake about 20m from the sea. It used to be a mine, hematite, magnesite and pyrite. The lake, however, is too sulphurous to swim. - View from Monte Arco (276 m)
View towards Porto Azzurro. - Chiesa di Santa Lucia
The church was built in 1653 by Flaminio del Turco, already in baroque style. - Pozzo dei Grifi e dei Leoni
Two griffons and two lions holding the Medici coat of arms. - Palazzo Comunale
I had to agree to so many terms and conditions before I was allowed to climb ;-) - Palazzo Nobili-Tarugi
Piazza Grande in rain. And Palazzo Nobili-Tarugi (left) built in the 16th century by either Antonio da Sangallo the Elder or possibly by Jacopo Barozzi from Vignola. - San Biagio
But the view is fantastic! This is San Biagio, built in 1518-1540 by Antonio da Sangallo the Elder. - Cathedral Saint Mary Of The Assumption
View of the cathedral. - Palazzo Comunale
And the higher you go, the smaller they become. - Palazzo Comunale
Now this was the highlight of my trip: climbing possibly the tiniest stairs I've ever seen. And I have climbed some dodgy towers in my life. - Cathedral Saint Mary Of The Assumption
The cathedral was 'finished' in 1680. Although it was never actually finished. I would assume that in 1680 they just gave up and proclaimed it finished. - Palazzo Comunale
Built in 1440 by Michelozzo, inspired by the Palazzo Vecchio in Florence. - Fortezza Medicea park
A giant (coffee?) cup in a park. - Italian charm
This is a charming and inviting entrance. - Some tall buildings
These are some tall buildings! - Lago Trasimeno
View towards Lago Trasimeno with a smaller lake in front, possibly Lago di Montepulciano. - Palazzo Cervini
- Torre di Pulcinella
This 17th century Pulcinella from Naples strikes the time. The funny thing is that no-one knows how and when it got here ;-) - Torre di Pulcinella
Look at the top! - St. Agostino Church
Founded in 1285 but completely renovated in the 15th century by Michelozzo di Bartolomeo. The upper facade was changed in the 18th century. - Palazzo Bucelli
A fish biting a pegasussnake? - Palazzo Bucelli
The bottom part of this palace is decorated with plenty of Etruscan and Roman remains. Some are quite interesting. - Palazzo Bucelli
I wonder what's the story behind these donkey's ears... Disclaimer: they of course may not be donkey's ears at all. - Palazzo Avignonesi
Built between 1542 and 1572 by Jacopo Barozzi, known as the Vignola. Now a hotel. - Porta al Prato
The medieval entrance to the old town. - Flower, flower on the wall
Looking up is sometimes worth it. - Santa Maria Assunta
The cathedral was built in 1462. It is located in Piazza Pio II, but since there was not enough room, they built some additional support for the church. A mistake, as it turned out. - Diocesan Museum of Pienza - Palazzo Borgia
Madonna col Bambino tra i Santi Biagio, Giovanni Battista, Nicola e Floriano by Lorenzo di Pietro - Vecchietta (1465). - Diocesan Museum of Pienza - Palazzo Borgia
Crucifix from the end of the 12th century. - Diocesan Museum of Pienza - Palazzo Borgia
San Regolo by Domenico di Niccolo "Dei Cori" (1435). - Diocesan Museum of Pienza - Palazzo Borgia
Un giovane Bacco by Antonio Amorosi (figure) and Giovanni Paolo Spadino (grapes). Around 1725. - Palazzo Comunale
The entrance to the Palazzo Comunale. - Model of Pienza
- Santa Maria Assunta
A wonderful maze! - Santa Maria Assunta
These stairs go very deep. - Santa Maria Assunta
When repairing the support for the collapsing church, they built a whole maze underneath it. A highlight to visit! - Santa Maria Assunta
Yes, unfortunately there are massive cracks. - Pienza
- View from Pienza
- Santa Maria Assunta
- Santa Maria Assunta
- Santa Maria Assunta
The church was built on artificial support, but the support was not solid enough. There are massive cracks in the building. - Santa Maria Assunta
A wonderful ceiling!