Lifestyle, Photography

What Is The Capital Of…?

by Bedlam & Daisies

Capital Cities.

This week’s Lens-Artists challenge, hosted by Viveka (My Guilty Pleasures), asks us to consider the topic of “Capital”.

While the interpretation is wide open, I have chosen to share photos from Capital Cities.

Amsterdam.

Amsterdam has bicycles EVERYWHERE. I liked the colors in this photo as well as the creative basket on the bike.

Some tourists think Amsterdam is a city of sin, but in truth, it is a city of freedom. And, in freedom, most people find sin.

John Green, author of The Fault in Our Stars

I don’t know anyone in this photo. I just like how the jacket that the young lady is wearing pops along with the sign.

Paris.

Miss Sunshine capturing a photo of the Louvre.

Breathe Paris in, it nourishes the soul.

-Victor Hugo

We did not spend long in the Louvre. The teens were not huge museum fans, but my husband was of the opinion that you cannot come to Paris and miss Mona Lisa. One of the other pieces I was excited to see was the Venus de Milo. This sculpture of Aphrodite was discovered in 1820. It can be found in the Department of Greek, Etruscan, and Roman Antiquities: Hellenistic Art (3rd-1st centuries BC).

Edinburgh.

I loved the winding alleyways found in Edinburgh. In fact, I have a canvas print of Victoria Street hanging right outside the door to my home office.

You can see that photo in my Photowall Review.

This location is Cockburn Street.

This is a city of shifting light, of changing skies, of sudden vistas. A city so beautiful it breaks the heart again and again.

– Alexander McCall Smith

Although you cannot take photographs inside of the Holyrood Palace, the exterior offers plenty of wonderful opportunities for capturing its grandeur.

London.

My limited time in London only afforded me the chance to see Westminster Abbey from the outside.

The streets of London have their map, but our passions are uncharted. What are you going to meet if you turn this corner?

– Virginia Woolf

The London Eye was one of the top things on my mother’s list for London. We also rode a boat on the Thames and overall had a wonderful two days in London.

Richmond, Virginia.

The Capital City of the Commonwealth (aka State) in which I live is Richmond.

One of the first things Miss Sunshine asked when we moved to Virginia in 2013 was when would she be able to play soccer. Since the age of seven, she had been playing at the local YMCA near our home in Florida.

After getting them settled into school, I began to look around. A local soccer club had signs and since she had missed tryouts for the fall, we opted to do one of the spring programs. She then tried out for the fall of 2014 season.

Each year, the club travels to Richmond to play in the Capital Fall Classic tournament. It is held in November and the girl’s weekend is typically right before Thanksgiving (and cold!).

These are scenes from 2015. At the time, Miss Sunshine was playing U12.

To move, to breathe, to fly, to float, to gain all while you give,
to roam the roads of lands remote,
to travel is to live.

-Hans Christian Andersen

Miss Sunshine has played as number 21 since beginning in U11. At the end of the 2015/2016 season, the U.S. Soccer Association changed the way they divided teams based on the birth year instead of the school year. I wrote about it in the post: What’s in a Number.

Miss Sunshine skipped U13 and went straight into U14 since she’s a 2003 baby. She moved from a left forward playing 8v8 to a defender playing 11v11.

Travel becomes a strategy for accumulating photographs.

-Susan Sontag

This past fall she finished up her U17 season.

I don’t capture as many photographs as I did in the beginning. I don’t have a zoom lens for my Sony Alpha, having opted for a wide-angle to capture landscapes and architecture. Plus, she now plays on bigger fields. However, after digging through my archives I’m thinking I should just carry my old Nikon next fall.

Did I mention that it’s always cold in Richmond in November? This was from her U16 year. I am wrapped in quilts and wearing my Sorels that are for something like -20 or -40 °F. and still only took my hands out long enough to snap this photo.

Richmond holds a special place in my heart for being the place of creating all these memories.

Travel not to find yourself, but to remember who you've been all along. -unknown photo quote over the Louvre in Paris France

Let your light shine!

Amy

29 thoughts on “What Is The Capital Of…?”

  1. That’s it, I HAVE GOT to get to Scotland. Next summer I think we are going to hike the Haute Route….which means we will be close enough for a popover. Already planning 2021 😊. The love u have for your daughter is the sweetest 💕

    Reply

    1. In Edinburgh hike up Arthur’s Seat (have I mentioned that?). Tons of tourists but a good chug up the hill and back to shake jet lag. In the West Highlands I saw many trekkers out in the boonies. I’ve heard you can get on and off trains in obscure places. Enjoy. Scotland is beautiful.

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  4. Amy, you have taking me to some majestic cities … in more than one way. Love the H.C Andersen quote. Great entry … thank you so much for playing.

    Reply

    1. Thank you!! I have to say that the photos you reference were taken after I had learned a tiny bit more about photography and were also taken with my upgraded camera. I’m glad to hear that my efforts showed. 🙂

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  11. Very interesting photos, Amy! I almost think I would recognize Victoria Street from the iconic photos. You brought me back to my children with the quote from Hans Christian Andersen. My Father would read us his stories when we were young children. Great post!

    Reply

    1. I’m so glad that you enjoyed the post, Erica! Yes, Victoria Street is quite iconic! That’s such a beautiful memory to tie to Hans Christian Andersen!! Thank you for sharing it. It makes me remember my own times of being read stories and also of reading stories to my children. 🙂

      Reply

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