Another baluster detail, another trilemma

Same baluster, same "camera" (on my Nokia cell)...

B/W, color or sepia?

Yup, I couldn't make up my mind on this one. This is a baluster detail taken with my Nokia. I've changed colors with Picasa... What do you think? Any preference?

Emerald ballroom ceiling

I attended a regional BI (business intelligence) conference at the Regent Esplanade hotel yesterday. All presentations were held in a so-called Emerald ballroom, which is called like that, I'm guessing, because of its oval shape. In addition to glorious marble columns and golden mirror frames, the central ceiling piece is tainted glass:



Btw, sorry for the lower quality, I took this photo with my Nokia...

Iron lace fence & doors

This is probably my favorite fence in whole Zagreb, with its elaborate iron lace work:


The building is in the Old town...

Doors that lead to our parliament also boast nice iron lace(with a touch of gold ;-)):

The oldest pharmacy...

Inside the Old town, next to the Stone gate, there's is (as far as I know) the oldest pharmacy in Zagreb (14th ct). Their windows boast old decoration, though the feeling is lost when you enter it - then it's a typical modern pharmacy... the building has been renovated many times since then, but the place of this pharmacy is the same as the original one and it continues its legacy.

The crest above the entrance says "k crnom orlu" which means something like "at black eagle's". This eagle, I'm guessing, might be some left-over from Austrian-Hungarian monarchy. Right below is the official (but old) crest of Zagreb. I'll leave its explanation for some other time.





FYI, the oldest pharmacy in Croatia is in Dubrovnik (dating from beginning of 14th), and it's the 3rd oldest pharmacy in Europe.

Colorful boats for rent...

Back to the lake Jarun:

Forest texture...

More mushrooms, all sizes, types and poison levels...

As I've already mentioned, the weather has been perfect for mushrooms, but I wouldn't eat any of these:



I didn't notice the fly when I was taking the photo:

Sunlit...

Any forest is a wonderful place to observe light/shadow play. Here are two scenes I "caught" in the forest near Trakoscan castle:





PS. I'm sorry I don't reply to your comments, this week is incredibly hectic for me, because I'm attending a full day (for the whole 5 days) Oracle SQL course. Add a few more extra activities and there ya go...

Trakoscan castle

Last weekend my Dad and I took my Mom to the Trakoscan castle. She's never been there, even though it's only an 1hr drive north of Zagreb. This castle was originally built in 13th ct. and has recently been completely renovated. It makes a great half-a-day outing for people from Zagreb to get away from city life - other than history lesson and museum visit, there are cafes, pedal-boats for rent on the lake right below the castle, and somewhere around 30km of walking/mountain biking path around the lake.

Archery

I don't think I have ever met anyone who's doing pro-archery. Recently (2 weeks ago), I've learned our family friend is 17th in Europe this year (out of >260 people!) in archery. He showed some serious skills during our visit to their house in Brinje (a small town in Lika region, 1hr drive SW from Zagreb);

Mushrooms!

Warm and sunny weather, as well as higher humidity in the autumn air created fruitful grounds for numerous mushrooms (edible and poisonous) in Zagreb's parks and nearby woods:





The mushrooms above are not poisonous, but also not tasty. Literate translation of their Croatian name would be flour-mushroom. Is anyone familiar with its name in English?

Making friends...

My Dad is a type of person where most animals sense something and they're immediately drawn to him. Usually fierce dogs turn into cuddly fluffy toys when they spot him, hurt birds won't bite as he's helping them... this little wild lizard also decided he won't do any harm and decided to see if he's tasty (took a small lick and bite but decided my Dad's finger isn't edible). After that, the little lizard took up a spot in the sun just a foot away from my Dad and both enjoyed probably last summer-like rays of sunshine this year:

Can't see the forest for the trees...

That's exactly how I feel at the moment...



The photo was taken in a forest near Zagreb...