| . |
Photo Samples, Europe
Scotland, Svalbard,
Iceland, Moldova, Transdnjestr, Bulgaria, Latvia
Romania, Albania, Ukraine, Bosnia, Montenegro, Samos & Denmark
To me as a "crazy traveller",
Northern Europe is just too polished. Centuries of development has erased the spirits of
the ancestors, and one has to look very carefully to find virgin places where the
industrial development has not taken its toll. However, with regards to history and
culture, especially Eastern Europe and Balkan are great places to go photo hunting.
As usual, all photos are © Claus Qvist
Jessen, and none of them are to be used without my permission. |
|
|
|
The
wonderfully fluffy highland cows of Scotland. With its long hair and almost invisible eyes
it's the vegetarian edition of the old English sheep-dog. This one is from the island of
Skye. © Claus Qvist Jessen |
|
|
|
|
The
single most famous product of the Scottish Highlands must be the whisky. Though the
blended types (like Jonnie Walker and Ballantines) still account for the majority of the
volume, the single-malts are by far the best and preferred by the real addicts. The photo
show the whisky stills of the Glenmorangie Distillery.
© Claus Qvist Jessen |
|
|
|
|
Not
all the trout of the Scottish River Spey are giants. Tiny ones like this one are much more
common. On the other hand, the fishing is quite expensive! © Claus Qvist Jessen |
|
|
 |
|
|
The capital of Svalbard, Longyearbyen, is quite colourful - at least in
the summer time, when the sun is shining bright 24/7. This photo was
taken around 10 pm in the evening! © Claus Qvist Jessen |
|
|
 |
|
|
Although it never paid off, mining used to be a big business on Svalbard, as
shown by this abandoned equipment, right behind Longyearbyen.
© Claus Qvist Jessen |
|
|
 |
|
|
In July, camping at almost 80 deg. north at Svalbard, Norway, is a
bright and sunny experience, even at midnight. © Claus Qvist Jessen |
|
|
 |
|
|
Fishing around Svalbard, Norway, is quite unproductive. The water is
just too cold. This photo was taken in the middle of July, at 1 am in
the morning. © Claus Qvist Jessen |
|
|
 |
|
It's not a joke! At each end of the "city limits" of the tiny hamlet of
Longyearbyen, signs warn you that from here and beyond, the risk of
running into a hungry polar bear is very real, indeed. The latest
casualty, though, was back in 1995. © Claus Qvist Jessen |
|
|
 |
|
Due to the risk of polar bears, it's actually forbidden to go anywhere
outside Longyearbyen without a loaded rifle. This rifle was actually
marked with Nazi symbols, showing that it was one of the guns left by
the Germans in 1945. © Claus Qvist Jessen |
|
|
 |
|
Svalbard landscape, east of longyearbyen. © Claus Qvist Jessen |
|
|
 |
|
The fjord outside Longyearbyen, Svalbard (Norway). © Claus Qvist Jessen |
|
|
 |
|
Close to the Nordenskiöld Glacier, the landscape is no less impressive;
Svalbard, Norway. © Claus Qvist Jessen |
|
|
 |
|
Hello! A happy seal enjoys life in front of the Nordenskiöld Glacier, at
almost 80 deg. North. © Claus Qvist Jessen |
|
|
 |
|
|
The abandoned ex-Soviet coal mining village of Pyramiden witnesses the
northernmost presence of the Communist Empire. The statue to the right
is reported to be the northernmost Lenin statue on earth. © Claus Qvist Jessen |
|
|
 |
|
| The
UNESCO-protected old town of Bergen, Norway. ©
Claus Qvist Jessen |
|
|
 |
|
|
Wooden fishing huts in the fjord outside Bergen, Norway. ©
Claus Qvist Jessen |
|
|
 |
|
| The
ancient Tingvalla Plains, Western Iceland, once the centre of the
Parliament of the North-Atlantic Vikings. ©
Claus Qvist Jessen |
|
|
 |
|
|
Gullfoss, one of the largest and wildest cascades in Iceland.
©
Claus Qvist Jessen |
|
|
 |
|
|
The famous "Geysir" has now seized to spray, and the largest geyser of
Iceland is now Strokkur, just 200 meters away. ©
Claus Qvist Jessen |
|
|
 |
|
|
Beautiful river - and the still rather active Volcano Hekla in the background. ©
Claus Qvist Jessen |
|
|
 |
|
|
Iceland trout sometimes get very big, but they are shy and elusive. I
had to do with a couple of minor ones like this cutie, caught on a small
nymph. ©
Claus Qvist Jessen |
|
|
 |
|
Very ex-Soviet: A Lada police car; Chisinau, Moldova. © Claus Qvist Jessen |
|
|
 |
|
Deep thinking. Chess player in a park in
Chisinau, Moldova.
© Claus Qvist Jessen |
|
|
 |
|
"All your eggs in one basket"; Chisinau, Moldova. © Claus Qvist Jessen |
|
|
 |
|
Sowing the seeds; central Moldova. © Claus Qvist Jessen |
|
|
 |
|
Engine break-down; central Moldova. © Claus Qvist Jessen |
|
|
 |
|
Orhei in
central Moldova is particularly known for its underground Orthodox
churches. As Moldova is not exactly on the main tourist trail, the
number of tourists is still small, whereas the number of local pilgrims
in increasing. © Claus Qvist Jessen |
|
|
 |
|
Orhei monk; not nearly as unhappy as he looks! © Claus Qvist Jessen |
|
|
 |
|
Absolutely unaffected by the fall of the Berlin Wall, the
tiny, self-proclaimed republic of Transdnjestr (in between Moldova and
Ukraine) is still ruled
according to true Marxism. The presidential palace, of course, is
decorated by a Lenin angel. © Claus Qvist Jessen |
|
|
 |
|
The Soviet never dies; 17th anniversary of the birth of the new republic
in 2008; Tiraspol, Transdnjestr. © Claus Qvist Jessen |
|
|
 |
|
Road workers doing a paint job;
Tiraspol, Transdnjestr. The photo is from 2008, the tractor from 1930 or
so! © Claus Qvist Jessen |
|
|
 |
|
Cart racing on a Sunday afternoon.
Whether the red colour is Soviet or Ferrari, I don't know.
Tiraspol, Transdnjestr. © Claus Qvist Jessen |
|
|
 |
|
Past-time fishingTiraspol, Transdnjestr. © Claus Qvist Jessen |
|
|
 |
|
The Tiraspol (Transdnjestr) patriark. Just like anywhere else in ex-Soviet, religion
has taken an upward swing after the fall of the Berlin Wall. © Claus Qvist Jessen |
|
|
 |
|
Despite 70 years of Communism, the Orthodox Church is very much alive
all over the region. Here the amazingly gilded roof of the magnificent
Saint Michael Church of Kiev, Ukraine. © Claus Qvist Jessen |
|
|
 |
|
Praying to Virgin mary; Lviv (Lvov), western Ukraine. This is old Polish
land, and unlike the rest of Ukraine, most people are Catholics. © Claus Qvist Jessen |
|
|
 |
|
Variations in Ukrainean dress code - or the changing of fashion. © Claus Qvist Jessen |
|
|
|
|
| Traces of the
Roman past: A magnificent amphitheatre in the center of Plovdiv, central Bulgaria. ©
Claus Qvist Jessen |
|
|
 |
|
|
The Black Sea coast-line at Sozopol, one of the more traditional
Bulgarian towns at the sea - strongly opposed to the get-drunk beaches
further north; Bulgaria. © Claus Qvist Jessen |
|
|
 |
|
Altar and candles from a small church in Sozopol, Bulgaria.
© Claus Qvist Jessen |
|
|
|
|
| By
decorations alone, the Orthodox Churches of Eastern Europe remind a lot of the vatican,
however, they don't recognize the Pope. Here a ceiling from the Trayan Monastery in
Northern / Central Bulgaria. © Claus Qvist Jessen |
|
|
|
|
| An altar from
the Batoshava Monastery in the central highlands of Bulgaria. © Claus Qvist Jessen |
|
|
|
|
| The holiest
monastery in Bulgaria: Rila Monastery in the far south-west. © Claus Qvist Jessen |
|
|
 |
|
|
Bulgarian high-technology; a motor bike in the village of Oroshak. © Claus Qvist Jessen |
|
|
 |
|
| Tsarevetz
Fortress; Veliko Tarnovo, northern Bulgaria. © Claus Qvist Jessen |
|
|
 |
|
|
Dryanovo Monastery; Bulgaria. © Claus Qvist Jessen |
|
|
 |
|
| The world-heritage
(UNESCO)
awarded old town of Riga (Latvia) is very much worth a glance. The
town hall building to the right is from the 17th Century.
© Claus Qvist Jessen |
|
|
 |
|
| In many
Eastern-European countries, newly-wed couples put a lock on a bridge to
symbolize unity; Riga, Latvia. © Claus Qvist Jessen |
|
|
 |
|
Obviously, someone in Riga doesn't like homosexuals.
© Claus Qvist Jessen |
|
|
|
|
| As the only
predominantely Muslim country in Europe, Albania's got its share of mosques - most of them
financed from abroad, including this one in Shkoder, financed by Arabs
and very Middle Eastern in style; northern Albania. © Claus Qvist Jessen |
|
|
 |
|
| Begger
outside a mosque, Shkoder, northern Albania. © Claus Qvist Jessen |
|
|
|
|
| Market woman,
Shkoder, northern Albania. © Claus Qvist Jessen |
|
|
|
|
|
Just married, this Albanian couple surely enjoys life. Joining a wedding
ceremony like this one is simply a great experience; Shkoder, northern
Albania. © Claus Qvist Jessen |
|
|
|
|
| Animal
transports are not always done according to the rules and recommendations of the
authorities. Here a sheep transport from Shkoder, northern Albania © Claus Qvist Jessen |
|
|
 |
|
|
The "father" of old-days Albania, the former Turkish General (though
Albanian born) Skenderbeg. He is revered as a good; Shkoder, Albania. © Claus Qvist Jessen |
|
|
 |
|
|
Vermosht Valley, North-East of Shkoder, northern Albania. © Claus Qvist Jessen |
|
|
 |
|
|
Local transport, Tamare Village,
Vermosht Valley, North-East of Shkoder, northern Albania. © Claus Qvist Jessen |
|
|
 |
|
|
Christian man from village in the
Vermosht Valley, North-East of Shkoder, northern Albania. © Claus Qvist Jessen |
|
|
|
|
| Viva the
revolution! For four decades, the Albanians were told that their development was superior
to the rest of the world. When Enver Hoxha died in 1986, they started to find out that
they were actually very far behind. Now things are changing slowly, but this
giant mosaic in Tirana has been allowed to survive the entry of the "evil
capitalism". © Claus Qvist Jessen |
|
|
 |
|
|
Cigaret selling boy outside a Tirana bar; Albania. © Claus Qvist Jessen |
|
|
 |
|
|
The steep streets of Gjirokastra, birthplace of Enver Hoxha; southern Albania. © Claus Qvist Jessen |
|
|
|
|
| Happy women;
Gjirokastra, southern Albania. © Claus Qvist Jessen |
|
|
|
|
| With its
rugged mountains, Bosnia is surprisingly beautiful and possesses some decent trout fishing
as well. © Claus Qvist Jessen |
|
|
|
|
| The civil war
in former Yugoslavia has taken its toll, and everywhere in Bosnia one can still see
bombed-out buildings - 10 years after the war stopped. © Claus Qvist Jessen |
|
|
|
|
| A local
Bosnian displaying one of my brown trout from the upper Una River, western
bosnia-Hercegovina. © Claus Qvist Jessen |
|
|
|
|
Orthodox
priest ligthing a couple of candles; Kotor, Montenegro.
© Claus Qvist Jessen |
|
|
 |
|
Happy girl celebrating something; Kotor, Montenegro.
© Claus Qvist Jessen |
|
|
|
|
| Madeira
Island, the home of the tasty Madeira wine; great for desserts. © Claus Qvist Jessen |
|
|
|
|
| Bran castle
in central Transylvania (Romania) was once thought to be the home of Count Vlad Tsepech
(Dracula), however, in reality he was never there at all. © Claus Qvist Jessen |
|
|
|
|
The entrance
to the old town of Sigisoara, Transylvania, central Romania. In the 15th century, the town
was the birthplace of the infamous Count Vlad Tsepech, also known as Count Dracula!
© Claus Qvist Jessen |
|
|
|
|
Wanna play?
Local backgammon hustler; Sigisoara, Romania.
© Claus Qvist Jessen |
|
|
|
|
| Women and
granddaughter; small village, Transylvania, central Romania. © Claus Qvist Jessen |
|
|
 |
|
|
Small harbour on the island of Samos, Greece. © Claus Qvist Jessen |
|
|
 |
|
|
Knitting the day away, this elderly lady is probably going to be here in
20 years as well; Samos, Greece. © Claus Qvist Jessen |
|
|
 |
|
|
Just like anywhere else in the Eastern Mediterranean, the Greek men love
to play backgammon - preferrably 24/7. Nobody really knows when they
actually go to work. © Claus Qvist Jessen |
|
|
 |
|
|
The town-hall square; Copenhagen, Denmark. © Claus Qvist Jessen |
|
|
 |
|
|
The main entrance to the tiny and very old amusement park of Tivoli.
Despite being only 16 hectares, it's one of the most visited parks in
the world; Copenhagen, Denmark. © Claus Qvist Jessen |
|
|
 |
|
|
Sunset in the harbour of Nakskov, Lolland, Denmark. © Claus Qvist Jessen |
|
|
 |
|
| The
Great Belt high bridge in between Fuenen and Sealand (Fyn and Sjaelland),
Denmark. Altogether, the bridge is more than 18 kilometres long, making
it one of the longest bridges in the world. © Claus Qvist Jessen |
|
|
 |
|
|
From my window in Addit, the great and rarely seen Danish winter; Denmark. © Claus Qvist
Jessen |
|
|
 |
|
|
Winter time in Ry, central Jutland, Denmark. © Claus Qvist
Jessen |
|
|
|
|
| Getting
married in the summer time is very romantic, indeed, as shown by this couple in
Silkeborg,
Denmark. Note that the groom is actually sitting down - and fishing! © Claus Qvist
Jessen |
|
|
 |
|
|
A favourite past-time in rural Denmark is the power pull. Special built
tractors are used, and a lot of beer is consumed, here at Sonder
Vissing, Central Jutland, Denmark. © Claus Qvist
Jessen |
|
|
|
|
| Roskilde
Festival 2006: The biggest annual rock festival in Europe is the Roskilde Festival, a very
good spot if you want to study serious hangovers, either you own or others'. © Claus
Qvist Jessen |
|
|
|
|
| Roskilde
Festival 2006: A couple of Swedes try hard to balance all their beer crates on a very
over-loaded cart. © Claus Qvist Jessen |
|
|
 |
|
|
Roskilde Festival 2006: A different type of wheel-chair! © Claus Qvist Jessen |
|
|
|
|
| Roskilde
Festival 2006: The "unknown" English folk band Belowhead did one of the best gig
this year and won lots of Danish hearts with their happy folk songs. © Claus Qvist
Jessen |
|
|
 |
|
|
Blues-rock legend Eric Clapton in action; Skanderborg Festival 2008, Denmark. © Claus Qvist Jessen |
|
|
 |
|
|
Humorous musician from Vejgaard Taarnblaeserlaug; Skanderborg Festival
2008, Denmark. © Claus Qvist Jessen |
|
|
 |
|
Waiting to get drunk; Skanderborg Festival 2008, Denmark.
© Claus Qvist Jessen |
|
|
 |
|
|
Davy Jones is alive - at least from the back; Skanderborg Festival 2008, Denmark. © Claus Qvist Jessen |
|
|
 |
|
|
After four days of heavy partying, these shoes just didn't make it;
Skanderborg Festival 2008, Denmark. © Claus Qvist Jessen |
|
|
 |
|
Probably the
strongest chess player ever born: Gary Kasparov of Russia, giving a simultaneous
exhibition in Lyngby, Denmark.
© Claus Qvist Jessen |
|
|
 |
|
| Future world
champion? Indian chess prodigy, 14 year old P. Negi before his game in Politiken Cup 2006.
© Claus Qvist Jessen |
|
|
 |
|
|
Vasilij Ivanchuk of Ukraine, constantly among the Top 10 of the World
during the last 10 years and probably the most absent-minded Grand
Master alive.
© Claus Qvist Jessen |
|
|
 |
|
If not Negi, this boy certainly has the talent. Norwegian super-star
Magnus Carlsen, age 13. In 2009, he is 17, currnetly second in the world
certainly the strongest player ever produced in Scandinavia.
© Claus Qvist Jessen |
|
|
|