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Istanbul, Turkey, 2010

Tue, 22 May 2012 03:04 -0500

Istanbul (Turkish: İstanbul) is the largest city in Turkey, forming the country's economic, cultural, and historical heart. With a population of 13.4 million, the city is at the center of the second-largest urban area in Europe after Moscow, and among the world's largest cities by population within city limits.

Founded around 660 BC as Byzantium on the Seraglio Point, the city now known as Istanbul developed to become one of the most significant cities in history. For nearly sixteen centuries following its reestablishment as Constantinople in 330 AD, it served as the capital of four empires — the late classical Roman Empire (330–395), the Eastern Roman ("Byzantine") Empire (395–1204 and 1261–1453), the Latin Empire (1204–1261), and the Ottoman Empire (1453–1922).

Interstate I80, Iowa, 2011

Tue, 22 May 2012 03:01 -0500

In the U.S. state of Iowa, Interstate 80 (I-80) runs east–west between the Omaha-Council Bluffs area and the Quad Cities area, serving Des Moines and Iowa City. It was built along the U.S. Highway 6 corridor and as a result, three sections of Interstate 80 overlap US 6 in Iowa. There are also significant overlaps with Interstate 29 in Council Bluffs and with Interstate 35 in the Des Moines area.

Sama, Istanbul, 2010

Tue, 22 May 2012 02:57 -0500

Sama is a Sufi ceremony performed as dhikr. Sama means "listening", while dhikr means "remembrance". These rituals often includes singing, playing instruments, dancing, recitation of poetry and prayers, wearing symbolic attire, and other rituals. In 2005, UNESCO proclaimed the "The Mevlevi Sama Ceremony" of Turkey as one of the Masterpieces of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity

Firenze

Mon, 07 May 2012 00:16 -0500

Florence or Firenze is the capital city of the Italian region of Tuscany and of the province of Florence. It is the most populous city in Tuscany, with approximately 370,000 inhabitants, expanding to over 1.5 million in the metropolitan area. Florence is famous for its history. A centre of medieval European trade and finance and one of the wealthiest cities of the time, Florence is considered the birthplace of the Renaissance, and has been called the Athens of the Middle Ages. A turbulent political history includes periods of rule by the powerful Medici family, and numerous religious and republican revolutions. From 1865 to 1870 the city was also the capital of the recently established Kingdom of Italy.

Interstate 80

Wed, 07 Mar 2012 20:00 -0500

Downtown

Sun, 04 Mar 2012 04:46 -0500

Toronto is the provincial capital of Ontario and the largest city in Canada. It is located in Southern Ontario on the northwestern shore of Lake Ontario. A relatively modern city, Toronto's history dates back to the late-18th century, when its land was first purchased by the British monarchy from the Mississaugas of the New Credit. The settlement was later established as the Town of York and proclaimed as the new capital of Upper Canada by its lieutenant-governor, John Graves Simcoe. In 1834, York was incorporated as a city and renamed to its present name. The city was ransacked in the Battle of York during the War of 1812 and damaged in two great fires in 1849 and in 1904. Since its incorporation, Toronto has repeatedly expanded its borders through amalgamation with surrounding municipalities, most recently in 1998.
With over 2.6 million residents, it is the fifth most populous city in North America. Its metropolitan area has over 5.5 million residents. Toronto is at the heart of the Greater Toronto Area (GTA), and is part of a densely populated region in Southern Ontario known as the Golden Horseshoe. The census metropolitan area (CMA) had a population of 5,583,064, and the Greater Toronto Area had a population of 6,054,191 in the 2011 Census. Its cosmopolitan and international population reflects its role as an important destination for immigrants to Canada. Toronto is one of the world's most diverse cities by percentage of non-native-born residents, with about 49% of the population born outside Canada. Toronto is also consistently rated as one of the world's most livable cities by the Economist Intelligence Unit and the Mercer Quality of Living Survey.

Bidwell Street

Sun, 04 Mar 2012 04:43 -0500

The West End of Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada is on the downtown peninsula neighbouring Stanley Park and the areas of Yaletown, Coal Harbour and the downtown financial and central business districts.
The definition of the "official neighbourhood" of the West End, according to the city, is the area west of Burrard Street, east of Denman Street, and south of West Georgia Street. Historically the term originated and remains used by Vancouverites to refer to everything from Burrard Street to Stanley Park, including the Stanley Park Neighbourhood west of Denman Street and the Coal Harbour Neighbourhood. Coal Harbour Neighbourhood is officially designated as west of Burrard and to the north of West Georgia, although the newly built areas between West Pender Street and the waterfront are expressly "Coal Harbour" and not considered part of the West End.

OneLight Theater

Sun, 04 Mar 2012 04:41 -0500

OneLight Theatre is a professional theatre company, based in Halifax, Nova Scotia whose primary function is to develop and produce new plays. In addition to its artistic work, OneLight Theatre also hosts conferences related to theatre arts, participates actively in professional organizations, and mentors emerging professional artists through the Firestarter program.
OneLight Theatre's primary work is to develop and stage original theatrical productions, derived from a variety of international classic and modern source materials, through a disciplined collaborative process. In doing so, the company engages with a variety of artistic and academic professionals thereby developing an ever-widening dialogue about theatre in Canada. Through their work it strives to explore and broaden the understanding of theatre and its role in the cultural framework of Nova Scotia and Canada, and to facilitate national discussions about developments in the theatrical profession

Davie Village

Sun, 04 Mar 2012 04:39 -0500

Davie Village (also Davie District or simply Davie Street) is a neighbourhood in the West End of Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. It is the home of the city's gay subculture, and, as such, is often considered a gay village or "gaybourhood". It is centred on Davie Street and roughly includes the area between Burrard and Jervis streets. Davie Street - and, by extension, the Village - is named in honour of A.E.B. Davie, eighth Premier of British Columbia from 1887 to 1889; A.E.B's brother Theodore was also Premier, from 1892 to 1895.

Davie Village banners on Davie Street lampost. The sun banner was designed by artist Joe Average.
The Davie Street Business Association coined the name "Davie Village" in 1999 and also commissioned banners from local artist Joe Average, which fly from lampposts along the street. The two-sided banners depict a rainbow flag on one side and a sun design by Average on the other. Many businesses and residents along Davie Street and in the West End generally also fly rainbow flags as a symbol of gay pride, and many of the covered bus stop benches and garbage cans along Davie Street are painted bright pink.

Omni Hotel

Sun, 04 Mar 2012 04:37 -0500

Los Angeles, with a population at the 2010 United States Census of 3,792,621, is the most populous city in the state of California, and the second most populous in the United States, after New York City. It has an area of 468.67 square miles (1,213.8 km2), and is located in Southern California. Often known by its initials L.A., the city is the focal point of the larger Los Angeles-Long Beach-Santa Ana metropolitan statistical area, which contains 12,828,837 people as of 2010, and is one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world and the second largest in the United States. Los Angeles is also the seat of Los Angeles County, the most populated and one of the most ethnically diverse counties in the United States, while the entire Los Angeles area itself has been recognized as the most diverse of the nation's largest cities. The city's inhabitants are referred to as "Angelenos".
Los Angeles was founded on September 4, 1781, by Spanish governor Felipe de Neve. It became a part of Mexico in 1821 following the Mexican War of Independence. In 1848, at the end of the Mexican–American War, Los Angeles and the rest of California were purchased as part of the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo, thereby becoming part of the United States. Los Angeles was incorporated as a municipality on April 4, 1850, five months before California achieved statehood.