2010-10-28

beetle, graffiti

Beetle graffiti

More from the ever-changing graffiti mile on the banks of the Saar. I would have liked to have captured all of the beetle's snout, but another centimetre backwards and I would have ended up in the middle of yesterday's picture.

2010-10-26

shopping mall

Europa Galerie

Just what the world needs ... another shopping mall! This one built within the façade of the old mining administration buildings.

2010-10-24

bridge, twilight,

New footbridge

With lots of camera-friendly zigs and zags.

2010-10-22

bus stop,

Old bus terminus

Dating back to 1955, now a listed building.

2010-10-21

street café

Back street Saarlouis

A typical Saarlouis scene, restaurants and street cafés amongst the old barracks and battlements.

2010-10-20

fortress

Remains of the hexagon

Saarlouis: built on the Saar by Louis XIV. The painting at the top shows it as it was in 18th century France. The photo on the bottom shows it as it is in 21st century Germany. As you can see, much of the work of the French military engineer Vauban remains. Surely, he did not use all those geometric patterns just for defense. Surely, he also wanted to build something pretty?

2010-10-17

statue

Marshall Ney + Una + Lola

German Saarlouis' most famous son, Napoleon's great general.

2010-10-15


Waiting

Wir warten alle und wir werden nie aufhören zu warten.

We are all waiting and will never stop wating

Words from the local poet Johannes Kirschweng, depicted here in bronze by the local sculptor Lothar Meßner.

2010-10-14


Still making steel

Although the iron works I have been showing over the past few days are well and truly closed, some of the steel making tradition lives on in Völklingen, as in this factory on the banks of the Saar.

This is the last of my latest series of photos of Völklingen and thus represents the end of a cycle of photos that I have taken on the Vélo Vis-à-Vis bike trail. The main circular path is ca. 330km long (50/50 Germany/France), although I must have covered about 500km as I did the path in stages and used the radial paths, too. It is a great mix of German and French, hills and plains, rural and industrial, ancient and modern. I can recommend it to anyone. For more info in French and German see http://www.velovisavis.eu - note the appropriate eu URL. I have tried to tag my photos along the path.

2010-10-12

iron works, rust

Rusting arches

The Völklingen ironworks is a most imposing structure, especially when lit up at night. These arches are one of its most distincitve features and lend it a cathedral-like quality.

2010-10-06

iron works, art gallery,

Pollack in the ironworks

To celebrate the opening of the Pompidou Centre in nearby Metz, replicas of some of the paintings are hanging in the old ironworks in Völklingen.

2010-10-04

dust

Remains of a film set

More signs of extraterrestrial life in Saarland?