Dear Reader (2023-06-20),
In today’s collection of images, we travel the 2-3 hours by bus from Bucharest to Constanta. I wander past security guards in Constanta, continue wandering along a boardwalk, and I reflect on and am thankful for my dumb luck. We also board our boat, Viking Kadlin.
Jet lag is still lingering, and our bodies are still not sure of what time zone we are in. Though an excursion is available, we choose not to join it. Instead, while April rests, I go out for a walkabout in the port of Constanta. On my head, I am porting an Australian bush hat, and I have a camera slung over my shoulder. It is clear I’m not from around here. Though I don’t do anything stupid or to attract attention, I wander through a semi-secure area of the port without question. I am reminded that here in North America we are far too neurotic about security.
The port of Constanta is evolving. Our boat is docked near the fading and rusty glory of the old port. Out along a long spit the new port is emerging. The old claw loaders have made way for large vacuum systems and huge grain elevators. In the old port, some of the old claw grabber cranes are slowly being turned into scrap metal. Others are in use.
I walk past half a dozen security guards at the vehicle checkpoint for the port, and continue onto the boardwalk. The Crimean Peninsula is just over 400 km away (as the gull flies) to the North-East, and just beyond, horrors of war are occurring. I could get lost in a futile spiral of “What does it all mean?”, as I think of the incongruity of being here on a peaceful boardwalk, rather than being in places not nearly as comfortable. Alternatively, I am thankful for having the health, time, and resources to be here. I can’t solve the world’s problem, but I do try and help locally where I can.
Today’s background sections cover Constanta, the Casino, and briefly introduces our boat.
Constanta Romania [1]
Constanta, a city steeped in history, is on a western shore of the Black Sea. Constanta is renowned as one of Romania’s centers of art and culture. A pleasant stroll along its boardwalk offers views over the Old Town, along which sits the iconic art nouveau building of the Constanta Casino. The towering minaret of the Grand Mosque presides over the city and a climb to the top rewards visitors with spectacular vistas over the ocean.
Constanta Casino [1]
The Constanta Casino was commissioned by King Carol I and designed by French architect Daniel Renard in the early 1900s. It was officially opened to the public in 1910. With a brilliant facade adorned with stunning architectural elements, this opulent art nouveau structure was once a popular destination for royalty and elites, where shows, balls and gambling transpired during the early 20th century.
Despite its immense popularity, the casino’s operations were short lived due to the impact of WWI, during which time the establishment was converted into a hospital and damaged by bombings. The casino reopened in 1917, but not with the grand status for which it was previously known. History repeated itself when WWII began, and it was again used as a hospital and experienced further damages. It became a community center during the 1940s and then a bar and restaurant until it closed in 1990. Although the building is abandoned today, Constanta Casino is protected by the Romanian Ministry of Culture and National Patrimony as a historical monument, and its grand beauty continues to attract visitors from around the world.
Our Boat, Viking Kadlin [1]
The boat is named for a daughter of Norse nobility. Kadlin was the daughter of Rolf (also called Rollo), a Norse nobleman who conquered and ruled over the Viking principality that became known as Normandy. Kadlin (a Norse variant of “Catherine”) married King Bjolan of Scotland. Kadlin and Bjolan had a daughter, Midbjorg, who married Helgi Ottarson, an Icelandic Viking.
Length: 443 feet; Guests: maximum 190; Crew: 53
Notes On Photos – Set 1
~ 1 – Through A Bus Window on the way to Constanta
~ 2 – Through A Bus Window – Here it is rapeseed and not canola
~ 3 to 6, 14 – Port of Constanta
~ 6 – Panorama (approx.. 44 x 20 inches)
~ 7 – Sailors learning to furl sails
~ 8 to 12 – Boardwalk
~ 8 – Looking north-east
~ 9 – Information booth for casino restoration
~ 10 – The casino under restoration
~ 11 – Lover’s knots (instead of locks), and ribbons for Ukraine on the fences around the casino
~ 12 – Opposite the casino on the other side of the boardwalk
~ 15 – The top deck of our boat
~ 16-18 – Breakwater units – each unit is composed of 3, 9, or 12 cubic meters of concrete [2] – a cubic meter of concrete weighs approximately 2.5 tonnes
Notes On Photos – Set 2
~ 19 to 26 – Looking up, and looking over fences, in the old port
Collections To Be Updated From This Post
~ Through A Bus Window
~ Out and About
~ Place Specific
References
~ [1] – Adapted from printed Viking daily information sheet – no link
~ [2] – https://www.concretelayer.com/en/constanta-port-extension-northern-breakwater-romania
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As always, all comments are welcome and sought.
Cheers, Sean
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All rights for all material on any media reserved – © Sean P Drysdale 2020-2024
Don’t get me started on the security fetish that so many organizations have.
2, could almost have been taken during a Zeller canola tour. I thought rapeseed was canola.
4, Seaports are a great hunting ground for photos.
6, a variation on the Usual Suspects?
7, Such a beautiful ship! I once upon a time wanted to run away to sea on a sailing ship.
11, you must have thought you’d died and gone to heaven!
12, pity about that air conditioner. Love the different textures.
13, seagulls are notorious for looking unimpressed. I wonder what the story is for the one ferris wheel chair.
15, I’d happily have dinner there. Looks warm and inviting. Having a great moment, imagining myself there on a warm summer evening, drinking some wine, watching the sights of Europe going by.
Thank you for visiting and commenting. The following is an abstract from Wikipedia “Theodore Tugboat is a Canadian children’s television series about a tugboat named Theodore who lives in the Big Harbour with all of his friends. The show is a co-production between the CBC and the now defunct Cochran Entertainment. It was filmed on a model set using radio controlled tugboats, ships, and machinery. Production of the show ended in 2001.”