Thursday Doors:12/1/17

Oman stories…

Bahla, (Arabic: بهلا‎‎), is a UNESCO World Heritage Site town, located 40 km away from Nizwa, and about 200 km from Oman’s capital Muscat which lies in the Ad Dakhiliyah region of Oman. It is notable as the home of one of the oldest fortress in the country, the 13th century Bahla Fort and for the town’s pottery.

On our November/ December trip to Oman, during the long 10 journey from Duqm to Dubai, I marked Bahla as a stopping point for a break from the endless roads. Continue reading

Thursday Doors: 4/1/17

Just one unusual door from the old town, Paphos, Cyprus this week.

I need new doors for my house here, so I’m starting a project to have some traditional Cypriot doors copied for a porch extension. Continue reading

Thursday Doors: 22/12/16

Travelling in Oman in September this year, on the road from Mahout to Sur, you pass along a sleepy coastline.

Fishing and camel and goat farms seem to be the livelihood in this region. Hemmed in by the vast Wahiba sands to the West and the Indian Ocean to the East, travels along this coastal road are rather like being in the land time nearly forgot.  Continue reading

Thursday Doors: 15/12/16

Flashing past this door scene in a small Omani coastal village, I requested a reverse, gestured nicely with my camera and received approval for the shot…

Door life in Oman

Linking with Thursday Doors, pop on over and check out some of this week’s lovely doors….

Thursday Doors: 24/11/16

Huế’,Vietnam, November 2016.

Huế’s Imperial city is surrounded by a moat and thick walls. Building started in 1804 in the reign of Emperor Gia Long. Until the demise of the Emperors in the mid-1900’s, more moats and building were added. During the Vietnam war, due to Huế’s religious and cultural status, US troops were ordered not to bomb or shell the city, for fear of destroying the historic structures.  Continue reading

Thursday Doors: 17/11/16

I didn’t post for Thursday Doors last week as I was en route to Vietnam.

I’ve now reached Huế in Central Vietnam.

Huế was the seat of Nguyen Dynasty emperors and the national capital from 1802-1945.  Continue reading

Thursday Doors: 3/11/16

Some more residential Dubai doors and gates for this weeks Thursday doors, from the Jumeirah area.(Arabic: جميرا‎‎‎, “Beautiful”)  Continue reading

Thursday Doors: 27/10/16

Just a little teaser from Doors (and gates) in Dubai….watch out for more in coming weeks!  Continue reading

Thursday Doors: 20/10/16

Last week I posted some older-style traditional Emirati doors from Dibba on the UAE’s East coast for Thursday Doors.

This week, here’s some modern ones from the same area on UAE’s East coast.  Continue reading

Thursday Doors: 13/10/16

Dibba is a port town on the east coast of the United Arab Emirates. This large natural harbor on the east coast of the northern Emirates has been an important site of maritime trade and settlement since the pre-Islamic era.  Continue reading

Thursday doors : 6/10/16…

I’m walking down the street after visiting Muttrah Souk in Muscat, it’s hot and humid. Let me get to the car and air conditioning pronto, I don’t do humid very well, and then I see a door…woah…stop….can you see it?  Continue reading

Thursday Doors: 28/9/16

 

Back in Oman, heading down through the vast and empty wastes of the centre towards Ras Madrakah, where the Gulf of Oman turns into the Southern Oman coastline, occasionally you come across a place that makes you wonder why it exists? What made it be given a name? Why is it there?  Continue reading

Thursday Doors: 22/9/16

Last week I was back in Oman and spent some time in Muscat. Hot and humid at this time of year, packed into space amidst foothills of the surrounding mountains, nevertheless, the city has great charm.  Continue reading

Thursday Doors: 15/9/16

I featured an unusual window in the small Cypriot village of Emba in this Monday Window post. At the same house, the door is worthy of a post, which should have been last week’s offering for Thursday doors, but as I was felled by a nasty summer cold, my Thursday doors didn’t happen.  Continue reading

Thursday Doors: 1/9/16

Up in the hills above my home in Cyprus is a beautiful little monastery called Stavros Tis Minthis which dates back to the 12th century.  Continue reading

Thursday Doors: 25/8/16

Come and walk with me around Mirbat, a fishing town on the South Oman, around 70km from Salalah . Last week we entered the old town, this week join me as we head on around the corner.

There are many old towns in Oman but in this one, I felt I was recording for posterity. Towns are abandoned and slowly fall to the ground, the history is gone.  Continue reading

Monday Window: 22/8/16

 

Windows in Mirbat, Southern Oman.

These windows in the walls of the house are unique, so many tales to tell, but we will never know…  Continue reading

Thursday Doors: 18/8/16

It’s Thursday again..where did the week go? The” full of good intention” head plan for this week’s doors post ran out of time.

So here’s a little taster and next week I’ll take you around an eclectic collection of Arabian doors and windows from this old city.  Continue reading

Thursday Doors: 11/8/16

The ancient settlement of Khor Rori in the Dhofar region of Southern Oman stands above a natural harbour on this wild and dangerous coast. The town in the settlement is known as Sumhuram. This small town was founded as an outpost for the kingdom of Hadramawt around the first century CE. The Dhofar region was the main exporter of Frankincense in ancient times and maritime contacts were discovered during the excavations in the 1900’s to both India and the Mediterranean.  Continue reading

Thursday Doors: 4/8/16

Returning to Omodos in Cyprus, a small village in the Troodos foothills, the narrow cobbled streets of the traditional village are perfect for a door hunter…..  Continue reading

Thursday Doors 28/7/16

Over the last couple of weeks, I enjoyed a mammoth 4,500km road trip around Oman. Travelling around this vast country, passing through places that are certainly off the tourist route, it was fascinating to see life in the remoter places.  Continue reading

Thursday Doors: 21/7/16

On the way to Masirah island, Oman to catch the ferry at Shannah port, invariably you pass through the small town of Mahout.  Continue reading

Thursday Doors: 14/7/16

Back on Masirah island, Oman for a few days during the summer monsoon season. Re-visiting the usual haunts, time for a trip to the small settlement of Sur Masirah, a magnet for wave junkies.  Continue reading

Thursday Doors: 7/7/16….

A very typical Cyprus door, note the high, round handles, operating an inner latch… you see these in mountain villages on the old houses…often a door to a courtyard entrance rather than a house, hence the solid wood structure.

Offset by pink bougainvillea, a traditional pot and some rather lovely stonework, I wouldn’t mind a set of these at my house!

Linking with Thursday Doors , pop over and see doors for this week….

Thursday Doors: 30/6/16

Fifteen kilometres below the summit of Mount Olympus in the Troodos mountains in Southern Cyprus lies the picturesque village of Omodos. One main, wide cobbled street runs down the centre towards the Monastery of the Holy Cross. Flanked by mulberry trees the road is lined with cafes and restaurants and it is a popular mountain village to visit.  Continue reading

Thursday Doors: 23/6/16

Driving up the coast of Oman from Shannah to Sur in the aftermath of a major storm early May, the small towns along the coastal road are weatherbeaten, fishing towns.

Many hundreds of miles from main centres, (Muscat is an 8-hour drive from here) the pace of life is slow and traditional.

Traditionally doors in Oman are of the metal type, with simple embellishments, check out the heart door, but occasionally you get a bit of variety….

I spend a lot of time being a car photographer on these long journeys, especially in these lands, but occasionally I get spotted!

Linking with Thursday Doors and the Discover challenge The Story Behind a Door

Thursday Doors: 16/6/16

Magnificent doors at the imposing Wells cathedral in Somerset, Great Britain. Built between 1175 and 1490, it is a wonderful place to visit.  Continue reading

Thursday Doors and CFFC: 9/6/16…. A London pub…

On the way through Soho, passing on the other side of the street, I spotted this amazing doorway to a London pub, The Salisbury in Covent Garden.  Continue reading

Thursday Doors: The Bloomsbury Hotel

This week, a floral extravaganza around the entrance doors of the Bloomsbury Hotel, Great Russell Street, London.  Continue reading