Found a couple of negatives in my "forgotten filmstrips shoe box" and played with them in my darkroom
this morning. They are from Lisbon and the first one may have a unique angle of
view.
I took this one from my hotel room at the Alif Hotel. I have
stayed a few times and liked the fact that it was close to the bull fighting
arena, the Campo Pequeno. Actually in Portugal the bull fight is really not a
fight for life as in Spain. It is called tourada
and is an athletic challenge between the fighters and the bulls. But no bull is killed in
the fight.
When I was looking out of my room window, I saw this man on
the spiral stairs. The cloths hanging to dry, the stairs, the man smoking a cigarette and the overall feel of the building had simplicity and a mystery.
This second photo is also from Lisbon, but I do not recall the
name of the neighborhood. This time the buildings are in full sun and the woman
sitting on the chair always reminds me of the Mediterranean tradition of a
neighborhood. Indeed, while Portugal is not on the Mediterranean sea (but the Atlantic
ocean) it is in the Mediterranean region and historically has been influenced
by Mediterranean cultures, food, lifestyle and yes, attitude.
That is in part why I have always felt “at home” in
Portugal.
January20, 2018
© Vahé A. Kazandjian, 2018
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