Anybody who knows us, knows that we are not religious people in any way. However, we do like going to church, and we have probably been to more churches than most people who are religious!
We enjoy church architecture and decoration, and we enjoy the history associated with many very old churches. And so when we travel, we tend to visit a lot of churches. Sometimes we make a special effort to get to a church, and other times we simply come across an interesting looking church and check to see if the door is open.
Sherman parked up at St. James Parish Church near Port Dufferin, Nova Scotia, Canada
We also visit churches with our motorhome. Many times, we have stayed in a church parking lot overnight! Beats a Walmart any day of the week! Oh, except Saturday night...if you stay on a Saturday night, you had better be prepared to leave fairly early on Sunday morning!
One of the things we've noticed with churches is that what you see on the outside may not be an indication of what is on the inside. Sometimes a church that has a very ornate and different exterior can have a very plain interior. And sometimes a church that is very boring outside can be very interesting inside.
So we have a lot of pictures related to churches. We thought that we would show you some of the more interesting ones today...
The breathtaking carved facade of the Santo Domingo Church in San Cristobal de las Casas, Chiapas, Mexico.
Built in 1547. Unbelievable. I can't imagine how they could make this to begin with, let alone have it last over 400 years.
St. John's Anglican Church (1754), second oldest protestant church in Canada, Lunenburg, Nova Scotia, Canada.
St. Louis Cathedral, Jackson Square, and Louisiana State Museum. French Quarter in New Orleans, Louisiana, USA
The Notre Dame Cathedral Basilica of Ottawa taken from the back of the Parliament Buildings in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada.
Inside the church that was all decorated up for Three Kings Day in the centro plaza in San Andres Tzirondaro, Michoacan, Mexico.
The church that was under construction when it was buried by lava from the Paricutin Volcana in Mexico in 1943.
Many of the interesting churches that we have visited were in Mexico. But when we went to England and Europe in the summer of 2012, we quickly realized that that is where you need to go if you love visiting churches!
St. Mary Redcliffe Anglican Parish Church, Redcliffe, Bristol, England, UK.
St. Michael Church, built in the 13th century, Somerton, Somerset, England, UK.
Wakefield Cathedral, or the Cathedral Church of All Saints, Wakefield, West Yorkshire, England, UK.
Inside of the Bristol Cathedral or The Cathedral Church of the Holy and Undivided Trinity, Bristol, England, UK.
Sometimes, the most amazing part of a church is the organ! Here is the one in the Cathedral of Assumpiton of Virgin Mary (Chram Nanebevzeti Panny Marie) a UNESCO site in Sedlec just outside of Kutná Hora, Central Bohemia Region, Czech Republic.
St. Wenceslas' Cathedral (Katedrála svatého Václava) and the Chapel of St. Anne at Wenceslas Square, Olomouc, Olomouc Region, Czech Republic.
Skulls at the opening of one of the pyramids of bones at the Sedlec Ossuary (Kostnice Sedlec) or The Bone Church in Sedlec just outside of Kutná Hora, Central Bohemia Region, Czech Republic.
Often, you need to look up in a church. The ceiling is sometimes the most interesting part, and we often wonder out loud at how they could have even built it!
Looking up at the frescos on the ceiling of the dome in the Church of Saint Michael (Kostel sv. Michala) in Oloumoc, Olomouc Region, Czech Republic.
Wow. I didn't realize how many pictures of churches we have. That's enough for today. We'll have to do a "part 2" someday.
Our Amazon deal of the day? Strangely, in the last three days nobody has bought our deal of the day! You've bought other items that we get credit for though, so thanks for that! And, just so you know how the system works, we get credit for any items you buy through our Amazon link for 24 hours after you first visit through us.
Okay, we'll try again. I came across this one yesterday afternoon. I've bought three different Seiko brand watches in my life. The first one was when I was 17 or 18 years old and I paid almost $200 for it back then. I still have it, and it still works. It's pretty banged up though! The others I still have as well.
Seiko watches still typically retail for around the $200 mark. This one is on sale for $49!!!
Seiko Men's Dress Watch.
Normally, you can't even buy a Seiko watchstrap for this price, let alone the whole watch. What a fantastic deal!
Enjoyed the churches! One of my favorite was Cologne Cathedral - very ornate.
ReplyDeleteHopefully we will get to see it one day!
DeleteI'm not religious either, but I sure share your interest in church architecture. When we were in high school near Detroit, a group of us were allowed to climb up the ladders of the bell tower of the "Maritime Sailors' Cathedral", as Gordon Lightfoot called it. Still remember that view!
ReplyDeleteHopefully you got credit for my Jackery purchase on Tuesday. My Amazon invoice doesn't provide any clue.
Yes...we show three Jackery purchases, so I'm sure yours was one of them...thanks! :-)
DeleteWe, too, visit churches all over the world... so I love seeing the ones in your blog today. A person doesn't have to be religious to appreciate the beauty, the diversity, and even the "plainness" that they see. guess the Gauguin church in Barcelona will never be completed in my lifetime.... guess I'll just have to imagine what it will look like when finished ;-)
ReplyDeleteThat church is on our list to see. Kevin's dad took a picture of it from back in 1954 so we would like see how much progress has been made on it since then.
DeleteLovely images. Like you, we are not religious, but we visit them all the time in our travels.
ReplyDeleteThank you Erin. We find them so interesting and it is also fun learning more about the history of the church and the surrounding area.
DeleteThe most impressive church I have evr seen is the Sagrada Familia church in Barcelona.
ReplyDeleteYep, we definitely want to see that one! As I mentioned in one of the comments above we would like to compare it now to the picture Kevin's dad took back in 1954.
DeleteIt's beginning to sound like an echo in here. I'm not religious although I am spiritual and I love churches. Don't like a lot that is done in their name but they are beautiful and often all the wealth of a community goes into building them. Really enjoyed your great pictures. I've been to all the ones you show in England but none of the rest. Nova Scotia is a good bet for me though.
ReplyDeleteWe think you would simply love RV'ing in Nova Scotia Sherry!
DeleteCuriously enough, we've been in a bunch of churches over the years as well. Some tiny (like the little one we went to in Boqueron, Puerto Rico) and some enormous, like the "Dom" in Cologne, Germany.
ReplyDeleteOr that one in Barcelona. I'll go back when they get that one finished. Maybe.
I have to admit though, I've been to quite a few sermons in a lot of those churches Got the sore ass to prove it.
The bone church in Kutna Hora was the creepiest though. (Yup, we saw that one too).
Nice collection.
There is certainly no shortage of churches to visit throughout the world. We are looking forward to seeing some of the temples in South Korea, they will definitely be different to the churches we are used to seeing.
DeleteYep, The Bone Church was certainly the creepiest one that we have visited!