11 November 2024

John III Sobieski Bridge in the Lazienki Park of Warsaw (Poland)

Oh, for a kindling touch from that pure flameWhich ministered, erewhile, to a sacrifice
Of gratitude, beneath Italian skies,
In words like these: 'Up, Voice of song! proclaim
'Thy saintly rapture with celestial aim:
'For lo! the Imperial City stands released
'From bondage threatened by the embattled East,
'And Christendom respires; from guilt and shame
'Redeemed, from miserable fear set free
'By one day's feat, one mighty victory.

From a Poem by William Wordsworth
about John III Sobieski

Carrick-a- Rede Bridge between Antrim and Carrick Island, Northern Ireland (Untied Kingdom)


A lone figure is waving
From the thin line of a bridge
Of ropes and slates, slung
Dangerously out between
The cliff-top and the pillar rock.

Poem by Seamus Heany,
about thie bridge

Stanley Brooke Bridge in Acadia National Park, Maine (United States)



"Interesting to look at and well built."

John D. Rockefeller, Jr.
about this bridge

08 November 2024

Alda Merini Bridge over the Naviglio Grande canal in Milan (Italy)

It was a clear body, forgetful and breathless. A body that knew no fear. It travelled along the shores of the Naviglio, alone, raven-like, with the hurried air of someone who wants to hide internal nakedness or a large evil hunchback. This body did not have a soul, it vaguely remembered having lost it down there, of having made a mistake. A terrible hole in its memory forced it to walk up and down the Naviglio, prey to the most absurd panic. It was a body made of soul.

Poem of Alda Merini

28 October 2024

Holtzarte footbridge over the Olhadobi Gorge near Larrau, Pyrenées Atlantiques (France)


“Agur Xiberoa, bazter güzietako xokorik ejerrena, agur sorlekia, hiri ditik ene amentsik goxuenak...”

 "Goodbye Zuberoa, the sweetest corner of all corners, goodbye to the world, my sweetest dreams from the city....."

From a traditional vasque song

Bridge over a canal in the Kurpark of Bad Salzuflen, North-Rhine Westphalia (Germany)


"If you have found a quiet bench in a quiet park and sat down, be sure you had a very profitable day!"

Mehmet Murat Ildan

27 October 2024

Bridge over the Upper Salmon River in Alma, New Brunswick (Canada)

...
Moonlight as we enter 
the New Brunswick woods, 
hairy, scratchy, splintery; 
moonlight and mist 
caught in them like lamb's wool
on bushes in a pasture.
...
Excerpt from a Poem
by Elizabeth Bishop

Kamares Aqueduct in Larnaka (Cyprus)


For the honour of Bekir Paşa I must communicate an instance of the old gentlemen’s public spirit. While he was Paşa of this land, in the year 1747, he formed the noble design of bringing water from the river at Arpera, and occasional springs on the road about six miles from hence, to supply the people of Larnaca, Salines and the shipping. A work worthy of great and good man, which might have cost him above fifty thousand piasters of six thousand pounds

Alexander Drummond,
british consul in Cyprus

22 October 2024

Hannepin Avenue Bridge over the Mississipi River in Minneapolis, Minnesota (United States)



I live by the sea, but the body of water I have the most feeling about is the Mississippi River, where I used to row and skate, ride on the ferry in childhood, watch the logs or just dream.

Susan Glaspell

Kowalski Bridge over the Slupia River in Slupsk, Pomerania (Poland)

Zabiorę moje ciało w dółW dół, w dół, w dół do rzekiZabiorę moje ciało w dół
Niech woda mnie porwie
Po prostu odpłynie
Och och…

Gonna take my body down
Right down, down, down to the river
Gonna take my body down
Let the water carry me away
Just float away
Oh ohh…

Lyrics of Rzeka (River)
from polish Krystian Ochman

14 October 2024

Ponte Pietra across the Adige River in Verona (Italy)

I’d like to sing of Verona, at some point
in the night, when the moon rises:
when the woods that sleep but seem to run
in the dreams of boats following their fortune
behind the waters of the Adige, which goes
seeking for countries and cities…
And when all the whisper is over
mirror it down in the Adige, from the bridges,
and fix it myself, wall by wall,
strong in the circle of the mountains…

Berto Barbarini

Wooden Bridge over the Prosna River in the Zawodzie Archeology Reserve, Kalisz (Poland)



"Archaeology holds all the keys to understanding who we are and where we come from."

Sarah Parcak

08 October 2024

Aerial Lift Bridge over the Duluth Ship Canal in Duluth, Minnesota (United States)


“The foreman was a short, iron-jawed man. He had once made a trip as far as Duluth. Duluth was far across the blue waters of the lake in the hills of Minnesota. A wonderful thing had happened to him there.”

Excerpt from The Torrents of Spring,
Ernst Hemingway

Puente del Milagro (Miracle Bridge) over the Mora River in Mora de Rubielos, Teruel (Spain) painted by Julio Monzón


"In 1870 a great storm made the Mora River waters reach the height of the Old Bridge , destroying its stone parapets; in the middle of the turbulent waters, only the pylon of the Virgin of the First Sorrow stood out, immutable, and since then it has been called the “Pylon of the Miracle”.

Legend

07 October 2024

Bridges over the Susquehanna River between Havre de Grace and Perryville, Maryland (United States)

I′m sailing up the Susquehanna River
Got the wind at my back
It's the kind of day where nature fills in
Everything that my soul lacks
There′s a bright blue sky and white puffy clouds
And the water's so pure you would weep
Seems like a dream but I'm a man woke up
After 46 years of sleep

Susquehanna River Song
by JD Smith

03 October 2024

Morning Sunlight Bridge over the Hoan Kiem Lake in Hanoi (Vietnam)


Is it too long a week?
I feel the days are so long without you
in a Hanoi night full of autumn flower fragance
The stars with me turn towards the horizon
and cry

Poem by Bui Sim Sim

Avenida Bridge between Irún, Guizpuzcoa (Spain) and Hendaya, Pyrenées Atlantiques (France)


"This bridge is a symbol of the history of Irun and with this opening, it recovers its original function. The bridges are not designed to cut off communication, to act as a border, the bridges are designed to unite, to connect the two sides of the Bidasoa and in this case the two cities, Irun and Hendaia."

José Antonio Santano, mayor of Irun.

23 September 2024

Huangsi Bridge over the Tuojiang river in Fenghuan Ancient Town, Hunan (China)

 
The bird Fenghuang is made up of the beak of a rooster, the face of a swallow, the forehead of a fowl, the neck of a snake, the breast of a goose, the back of a tortoise, the hindquarters of a stag and the tail of a fish. The fenghuang's body symbolizes the celestial bodies: the head is the sky, the eyes are the sun, the back is the moon, the wings are the wind, the feet are the earth, and the tail is the planets. Its body contains the five fundamental colors: black, white, red, yellow, and green. It is believed that the bird only appears in areas or places that are blessed with utmost peace and prosperity or happiness.

Decription of legendary bird Fenghuang
who gives name to this village

Adam Bridge over the Compton Pools in Compton Verney, England (United Kingdom)

"Campaign launched to save iconic 250-year-old bridge at Compton Verney in WarwickshireThe beautiful Grade II listed bridge has been the venue for many wedding photos...

...Installed in the 1770s as part of major changes to the park’s landscape by Lancelot ‘Capability’ Brown, the beautiful bridge is an important example of 18th-century architecture and is now Grade II listed."

Banbury Guardian,
4th Nov 2022

20 September 2024

Bridge over the river Restonica in Corte, Haute-Corse (France) painted by Marina Vandel


La mer, le sable chaud
On l'a attendu ohhh
Les couleurs de l'été, 
les cocktails genre mojito
On veut tous êtr bronzés, 
Avoir la peau dorée
S'fabriquer des souv'nirs
Ça nous fait tous rêver
Ça nous fait tous rêver
Mais l'été il est où?
Pour moi la Corsica
Jp'eux pas partir sans toi
Impossible, je peux pas
Impossible, je peux pas

Corsica, song by Monteur Baptiste

Gapstow Bridge over The Pond at Central Park, New York (United States)

Verdes y negras espesuras, parajes pelados
Río vegetal en sí mismo anudado
Entre plomizos edificios transcurre sin moverse
Y allá donde la misma luz se vuelve duda
Y la piedra quiere ser sombra
Se disipa Central Park

In Central Park 
song by Loquillo

19 September 2024

Maria Theresa Bridge (or Stone Bridge) across the Meuse River in Roermond (Netherlands)

 

"If I could wish for immortality on earth, it would only be for the power of relieving the distressed."


Maria Theresa of Austria

New Bridge over the Meric River (or Maritza River) in Edirne (Turkey)

A strong king who ruled over the Meriç River made a great celebration for her daughter birthday.  But in the middle of the party the princess was attacked by a big serpent that was gliding through the air. To save the princess, the monarch requested aid from the river god. The river god emerged from the water's surface in an effort to fend off the serpent. The river god was hurt by the serpent but was able to push the snake into the waters of the river with his last strength. The princess was still grasped by the snake. The river god, in response to the king's begging offered himself as his last chance to put down the serpent in the depths and change the river's direction. But as a result of this offering, the river god vanished, and the river was given the name Meriç in his honor.

Legend of the Meric River

Russky Island Bridge over the Eastern Bosporus in Vladivostok (Russia) painted by Roman Bayánov

 
"The arch span is 380 metres, which makes it the biggest in Europe. The arch design is unique, with metal contour and shrouds inside it."


Albert Koshkin,
president of this bridge building company

11 September 2024

Lupu Bridge crossing the Huangpu River in Shanghai (China)

"A soaring box-arch bridge with a record span, clean impressive lines and innovative use of the side spans of the arch and the deck to resist the thrust of the main arch."

Lupu Bridge, described at reception of
Outstanding Structure Award