Wednesday, 29 January 2014

Travelling Adventures - Part 1

Okay, so here's a post of a different kind.....

Some time ago, my sister introduced me to the website showmystreet.com.  I forgot about it, then looked it up again last night when I needed to give someone directions, and wanted a screen-shot of a location.  Since my last visit to the website, I see that there have been some upgrades.  Consequently, I think one website will change my evenings for the next while!  Television is no longer interesting.  I am hooked on geography.

If you go to the website showmystreet.com, you'll see that it's much like Google Earth, except web-based, which seems to be faster on my laptop.  I also prefer the interface.  So, why, you might rightly ask, am I spending my evenings hooked on a website?  Well, it's simple, really...  it's virtual travel!!  It's not just looking at things from an aerial view.  It's a full virtual tour of some places.

This evening I decided to tour the Vatican City.  I recommend this trip!  (Of course, I would much rather visit in person, but as my finances and schedule are at odds with my travel desires, this way will have to do).  I started off at the very top of the Cathedral, and got to move down, scanning the gorgeously ornate artwork from bygone eras.  There were "other" tourists everywhere!  I stretched my Latin comprehension to try to read the inscriptions on the walls.  I recall some words, but can't really piece the meanings together.  I guess that's what happens when one does not revisit one's undergrad studies for a decade.  (Goodness - it really HAS been a decade since I took Latin!)  I don't know if I've ever really marvelled at a ceiling before.  In Las Vegas, I certainly took note of the ceilings, but by contrast, those were just huge, whereas these are majestic, somehow.  I'm in awe, really.  Of course I have seen arched windows and domed buildings before, but this is something else!  I have read descriptions and watched video clips before, but somehow, this virtual tour beats all of those, as I'm looking at things on my terms.  There's something empowering about that, I think.
I "walked" up a flight of stairs, and looked down on the city.  I admire how they have used every piece of their building lots.  (I think the word is "admire."  Perhaps I am appalled, really, that they have left no garden, not even a strip of lawn in the front.  That gives me a hint at the cost of real estate, I suppose.)

I think this evening marks the first of many virtual adventures!

Where shall I go tomorrow?  Brunei?  Paris?  Aruba?  Oh the opportunities abound!!  The best part of all is that I can revisit my favourite places time after time.  I would much rather visit these places properly, and actually walk up the stairs, board the ferries, and hike up the mountains.  But until I get to go in person, my bank account remains in-tact;  my passport remains in a safe;  body clock remains on Pacific Time....


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