Sunset, last sunrise of 2013

These are two photos that different people posted to my facebook at about the same time - one was taken in Brazil and the other in Japan, both at about the same time!

Crystal Beach 2013

 Gated community where the amusement park was

View of Buffalo skyline

Still in Fort Erie!

Buffalo newspaper box - many of the people who own or rent here are from the Buffalo area

One of the old cottages, probably built by the carnies who worked at Crystal Beach Amusement Park, which closed in 1989, being crowded by new condos!

Property development protest sign in front of one of the older cottages

Deer on island

These are on a small island in the St. Lawrence - really it's just a reed bank - will check tomorrow to see if they are still there.

• Dec 30 - still there - ice is forming and hopefully they'll keep still until they can walk back to shore.

Ice storm 2013

Opium Bed, Penang, Malaysia

Opium Bed, museum, Penang, Malaysia - These were made for the purpose of smoking opium in the 19th Century - the little block is a sort of hard pillow.

Minus 25 Celsius

Street Art

I saw the tree painted on the side of this building in Fort Erie, November 2013 - I thought, hmm, interesting folk art:

Here's how google saw it in 2009:

(Images copyright google, for reference only) - It was an art gallery that had closed!

Niagara Falls 2013 part 2

Pulp Comics store in Niagara Falls, Ontario - I'd guess this Wonder Woman is based on someone else besides DC's character! Artwork by Robert "Hairball" Taylor

Birds flocking to be fed, Dufferin Islands

Metro Toronto Zoo, December 1, 2013

Reindeer

Panda sleeping in the rain

Monitor Lizard

Coral

African Bonytongue

Polar Bear

Arctic Fox

Gorilla. Their habitat is quite dim - I wonder if they need sunlight to synthesize vitamin D?

Tiger. The zoo was deserted and I thought the part I was walking through might be closed for the winter, but this cat was still out.

Johnny on the spot's in love!

"I Love You XOXO", magic marker crudely duct taped to a porta potty toilet, by Highway 417 near Vankleek Hill.

Niagara Falls 2013

 4410 Queen Street, Niagara Falls, Ontario

This puzzled me when I saw it - the style of the sign is at least 100 years old, but it wasn't faded - the building was a bakery that closed in the 1950s but was restored last year as apartments - the restorer painted the old sign again, although there is no bakery there now! http://www.keeferdevelopments.com/Queen-St-Village-Apartments.html

View of sign before restoration: https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkRTxLfcUuqANb9dASYc0L6-Mri6swGsQAmsaEzPF1R3kbYjwKRyQtsoRbZ5BohjHPIdzascuNftoEmsJ_oVDbvckO210wd9T0NMPlI1yzTG5HOQj2NXM0Pu5TtOtUr1iQ20KvG9ZqueKw/s1600/T-+Dec.22,+08.JPG

from Right in Niagara blog

 Panoramic view of falls

 View with padlock on railing - the Niagara Parks people try to take these padlocks off as soon as they can.

Korean paper lions

 Tesla in the snow - statue shows him with stick in hand, drawing out his ideas for generating electricity with AC current that could be sent a great distance - according to the story the idea just came to him when he was walking with a friend and he asked his friend to bring him a stick so he could sketch it out on the ground. He is standing on a generator - the statue is near the power station on Niagara Falls he helped build with George Westinghouse.

People still stand on the railings

Aero Car above the whirlpool, downstream from the falls

Floral Showhouse in snow

ER, standing for Elizabeth Regina, for the Queen Mother,  on a light standard at the Niagara end of the Queen Elizabeth Way. These used to be along the entire length of the QEW. The QEW was one of the first modern highways in North America, but they still carried with them the old idea of public works having lots of decorations - there were 'gateways'  with statues of lions at both ends in Toronto and St. Catharines.