Showing posts with label Travel (Not Synth Related). Show all posts
Showing posts with label Travel (Not Synth Related). Show all posts

Friday, 4 July 2014

Monte Albán - Mexico

Monte Albán is a large pre-Columbian archaeological site in the southern Mexican state of Oaxaca.
It was one of the first major cities in Mesoamerica and the center of the Zapotec state.
Zapotec culture goes back at least 2,500 years.


Zapotec civilization originated in the Central Valleys of Oaxaca in the late 6th Century BC. The three valleys were divided into three different societies which were separated by 80 km2 “no-man’s-land” in the middle. The 3 societies originally competed with one another, but in the end one ruled them all, and they made their capital in Monte Alban.


The site is situated atop an artificially-leveled ridge, which with an elevation of about 1,940 m (6,400 ft) above sea level. (To flatten an entire hiltop was some feat in those times).
...

 This central monument (building J) is made from stone slabs that bear inscriptions from foreign nations.
A symbol of  Zapotec domination. It's an odd shape.. has a roughly pentagonal outline.

It's orientation is thought to point to the location of the star Capella. Capella is indicated by the orientation point of the building on May 2, when the sun reaches its zenith and passes directly overhead.
 Possibily, building J follows the shape of the five brightest stars of a constellation known to us as Auriga, in which Capella is the brightest star.



The main plaza and surrounding temples however are aligned from north to south.....with the rising and setting sun as well as constellations. Was this to track time and make offerings to the Gods?


The city was founded around 500BC making it one of the earliest cities on MesoAmerica. The ruins are very impressive. Why was the city built so high ... above the farmland, and water? The people who founded this must have had defence in mind. Zapotec civilization.

Ancient Mexican Football.
 Notice the shape of the stadium ... its  like a capital "H"..... a symbol of Zapotec culture??



 This group of stones are the so-called "Danzantes" (literally, dancers), found mostly in the vicinity of Building L.
They represent naked men in unusual poses. The original explanation that they are dancers has been discredited and they are today believed to represent captured & sacrificed prisoners. They were most likely tortured which explains their twisted bodies. Some of them are genitally mutilated.

"By 200 AD, the Zapotecs had extended their influence, from Quiotepec in the North to Ocelotepec and Chiltepec in the South. Monte Albán had become the largest city in what are today the southern Mexican highlands, and retained this status until approximately 700 AD".
(Wikipedia)





You can view more of my Mexican travels here

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Wednesday, 25 June 2014

Teotihuacan - "birthplace of the gods" - Mexico

Teotihuacan is 48 km northeast of Mexico City
It's the site of many of the most architecturally significant Mesoamerican pyramids in N. America.

 Probably established around 100 BC. It's thought that the city was destroyed around about 550AD

 This is the way up to the peak of the Pyramid of the Sun

 The view from the summit of the Pyramid of the Sun
These are not built of solid stone like the Egyptian pyramids. ... rather, rubble covered with cut stone.

Looking over the Avenue of the Dead
In its heyday, this city came to be the largest and most populated center in the New World.


 This is a view of the Pyramid of the Moon from the Pyramid of the Sun.

This mural of a puma was discovered in 1963. It's part of the Puma Complex" that flanks the Avenue of the Dead.






 From Wikipedia:
Teotihuacanos practiced human sacrifice: human bodies and animal sacrifices have been found during excavations of the pyramids at Teotihuacan. Scholars believe that the people offered human sacrifices as part of a dedication when buildings were expanded or constructed. The victims were probably enemy warriors captured in battle and brought to the city for ritual sacrifice to ensure the city could prosper.[32] Some men were decapitated, some had their hearts removed, others were killed by being hit several times over the head, and some were buried alive.

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Wednesday, 18 June 2014

Israel - Golan Heights - Mt Bental

Mount Bental  has an observation point from which Syria, Lebanon and northern Israel can be viewed.
It's part of an old volcano.

There is a coffee shop on the summit where you can have the "highest coffee in Israel".
Outside the coffee shop I found an old Israeli bunker which was open to visitors.




















For more travel links click here:
http://djjondent.blogspot.com.au/2015/03/travel-postcards-index-my-travel.html

Friday, 6 June 2014

The Separation Wall - Israel/Palestine

The Israeli West Bank barrier. 
A controversial project to say the least. The graffiti art says much about the current state of affairs.
This wall is still under construction  Most of these pics were taken in the West Bank, near the city of Bethlehem.

Banksy - Official title: "Wall & Peace".
(It's of course  a reference to the great novel "War and Peace" by Leo Tolstoy).

I've been a fan of Banksy for quite a while. He is often labeled the "Art Terrorist".
To quote Banksy himself:
“Some people become cops because they want to make the world a better place. Some people become vandals because they want to make the world a better looking place.”

You can see quite a few of his most famous works here in Bethlehem.
I love this image of a dove wearing a bullet-proof vest while holding a olive branch in its beak.
Also by Banksy. Its official title is "Armored Peace Dove". Painted 2007.
Its simplicity and universal message is clear: peace is fragile & in danger.The gun is drawn but the bullet hasn't been fired....... there is still a chance to keep the peace.

The walls are on average 8 metres high.(approx 26ft).

The "wall museum". It displays stories told by Palestinian women. ... stories of "suffering, oppression & resilience".


A bit about the West Bank & Gaza Strip.

first a map:

The green section to the right (east) is the West Bank.

The small green strip on the lower left Med Sea
touching Egypt. is the Gaza Strip.

The Gaza Strip and the West Bank are two Palestinian territories that were part of Mandate Palestine and were captured by Israel during the Six-Day War in 1967. There are over 5 million Palestinians combined living in the two territories. 

The Gaza Strip is 140 sq miles of land located in the southwest corner of Israel, along the coast of the Mediterranean Sea. It also shares a border with Egypt to the south. 



The West Bank is another area of land located within the country of Israel, but it is much larger than the Gaza Strip at 2,173 sq miles. The West Bank stretches across the eastern border of Israel along the west banks of the Jordan River and most of the Dead Sea, thus how it received its name. The holy city of Jerusalem is considered by international law as part of the West Bank, with East Jerusalem being claimed as the capital by both Israelis and Palestinians.


In 1967, Israel, Egypt, Jordan, and Syria were involved in a military struggle most commonly known as the Six-Day War. Up until that point, the Gaza Strip had been under Egypt’s control and the West Bank under Jordan’s. However, after the Six-Day War, both the Gaza Strip and the West Bank were seized by Israel.


There has been a conflict over the specific territories of the Gaza Strip and the West Bank for over a hundred years, dating back even before Israel became a country. Since the Six-Day War, though, the tension between Israelis and Palestinians living in the territories has been constant, often ending in violence. Because Israel controls all access into the Gaza Strip and West Bank, Palestinians living there are under military occupation and are subject to Israeli restrictions, often depending on aid for food, water, and supplies.













This image below is probably the most famous of Banksy's Palestinian images.
The picture of a young girl patting down a soldier is surprising in its role reversal.
This disparity is heightened by her small stature when compared to the heavily armed soldier.
His machine gun is cast aside to the right.
Banksy.: "The Girl & the Soldier" (painted 2005).

A bit about the artist Banksy. He is based in the UK. He is a pseudo-anonymous painter, film maker and political activist. His works generally combine humor with graffiti.

This is a quote from Wikipedia:
"According to author and graphic designer Tristan Manco and the book Home Sweet Home, Banksy "was born in 1974 and raised in Bristol, England. The son of a photocopier technician, he trained as a butcher, but became involved in graffiti during the great Bristol aerosol boom of the late 1980s." "

I picked up this little Christmas decoration while in Bethlehem.
It's hand carved from olive wood.
If Jesus was born today I wonder how the 3 wise kings get over that wall ???

For more travel links click here:
http://djjondent.blogspot.com.au/2015/03/travel-postcards-index-my-travel.html