Yeah, flying above the Ljubljana Marshes again. But this time we were in a place we have rarely visited over the past few years, because this target on the western fringe of the Marshes is difficult, hidden and elusive. After five or six unsuccessful expeditions, we had more or less given up. Yet the place … Read more
In one of the previous articles we told you how the Ljubljana Marshes transformed from an utter, terrifying wilderness into one of the most altered, artificial, and unnatural landscapes in Slovenia, all in less than 200 years. What was once an immense, untamed wetland became a patchwork of drainage canals, cultivated fields, roads, and geometric … Read more
A glorious one. And an uncanny, mysterious one. It is easy to forget that the Ljubljana Marshes are, after all, a giant marsh when they bask beneath the prickly sunlight of spring. The land softens in memory then, appearing almost welcoming, almost tame. These two liftoff places are less than a kilometre apart in space, … Read more
These photos were taken a while ago, on March 19 – so much has happened in between we fell seriously behind with regular kite aerial photography work. The views right now are very different, almost unrecognisable in places, and yet perhaps that is the point. Every stroll is always different, whether in the streets below … Read more
Animula vagula blandula,hospes comesque corporis –quae nunc abibis in loca?Pallidula rigida nudula,nec, ut soles, dabis iocos!– Hadrian Imp. Standing on sacred ground, with thousands of years of history beneath our feet. A city abandoned and forgotten, yet still sacred: the sanctity of a place cannot be tampered with by humans, for it is not theirs … Read more
It needs some red.– Calvin After the beautiful insanity of Tunisia, we barely had time for laundry (as in clothes, not line laundry), and we were back on the road for yet another kite festival – one much nearer, shorter in time, but much, much bigger in space. I mean, just look at the map … Read more
Doch wir wollen ihn dir zeigen und du wirstmit Staunen sehn daß er dir sein Herz geweiht. A patio. The orange glow of the cigarette lights the night. There is sand in the air, carried by a westerly wind. There is an invitation to knock on a particular door. To the south, a strip of … Read more
When Zmajoljupci call, we ride. The summons arrived on Friday: Žuža and Žare, ever faithful disciples of those lying meteorologists, chose to believe the forecast – and by Saturday morning we were already in the car, reasonably well stocked with kites, pointing ourselves towards the Croatian capital. The day turned out splendidly. Spring at her … Read more
This is from Nomina Defunctorum, the Book of the Dead Benefactors who donated property to the Chapter of Aquileia (now in the Diocesan Archive of Udine): Nomina defunctorum is a simple list of the dates on which this or that benefactor died (so their souls could be duly prayed for on the correct day), and … Read more
There was nothing. There was no ‘there’ there. A hundred and fifty square kilometers of void. To be fair, only one species of animal thought that; millions of others were quite happily enjoying this purported “void,” thank you very much. And even the detractors once lived smack in the middle of it, back when it … Read more