Photo Of The Day: Checkmate

by Meg Nesterov on

Today’s Photo of the Day is from a chess game in Amsterdam at Max Euwe Plein (square). Named for a Dutch chess champion, there’s also a museum on site dedicated to the game and player where you can play against a computer, but the outdoor board looks more interesting. Photographer Kumukulanui notes that the man was primarily studying his opponent rather than the game, to better anticipate the next move and his serious expression gives an interesting depth to the portrait. What should be his next move?

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Photo Of The Day: Happy Birthday Brooklyn Bridge

by Meg Nesterov on


Today marks the 129th anniversary of the opening of the Brooklyn Bridge. Happy Birthday, you barely look a day over 100! This photo by Gadling’s own Willy Volk was taken from the NYC Water Taxi. He used a fake tilt-shift effect to get the unique perspective and slightly blurred edges, but it reminds me of the view you might see on a rainy day riding the subway over the neighboring Manhattan Bridge. It’s a view that never fails to inspire visitors and New Yorkers – one that’s unmistakably New York. Celebrate the anniversary with a walk across its span to Brooklyn and back; it’s one of New York’s last great free thrills.

Share your best travel photos with us in the Gadling Flickr pool. If we find them inspiring (and can download them), we’d love to include one as a future Photo of the Day.

Photo of the Day: the greener side of Antarctica

by Meg Nesterov on

We see a lot of amazing images from Antarctica, some with jaw-dropping glaciers and icebergs, others with cuddlier subjects like penguins. Seeing the greener side of Antarctica is rarer, as we tend to envision the continent as perennially covered in ice and snow. While no trees and few leafy plants grow there, you can still see green fields like the one above captured by Flickr user SummitVoice1 on some of the sub-Antarctic islands. The almost plush animal-like chinstrap penguins pop against the background of green grass and white feathers.

Add your unusual travel photos to the Gadling Flickr pool and you may see one featured as a future Photo of the Day.

Photo of the Day: Duty free Flamenco

by Meg Nesterov on

After many years of international travel, I’ve learned that duty free isn’t necessarily a deal. Unless you’re a smoker or live in a country where alcohol is heavily taxed (like Turkey), you won’t find much value among the jumbo-sized Toblerone bars or rows of designer perfumes. But I still enjoy the ritual of browsing through the shop, trying some free samples, and maybe taking home a tasty piece of whatever country I’ve just visited. Some airports really step up their sales technique, like a flash mob in Beirut, or this pair of Flamenco dancers in Madrid, Spain spotted by Flickr user TaylorMcConnell. Not sure what they are selling, but I hope it’s a good bottle of Rioja.

See anything fun at an airport? Add your pix to the Gadling Flickr pool for a future Photo of the Day.

Photo of the Day: Singapore’s unusual theme park

by Meg Nesterov on

This fellow is from one of Singapore‘s more unusual attractions – the Haw Par Villa theme park, also called Tiger Balm Gardens. Originally built in the 1930s by the creators of Tiger Balm to showcase Chinese folklore and mythology, the park is known for its bizarre and gruesome Ten Courts of Hell with such creepy statues and dioramas as a human-faced crab and bloody dismembered torsos (apparently it all makes sense if you know your Chinese mythology). It’s been relatively deserted in recent years, making it all the more bizarre. You can see more photos of the park in Flickr user SingaPaulie‘s photostream. The MRT metro line was extended this fall and you can now ride the Circle Line train to the park.

Capture any odd attractions on your travels? Add your shots to the Gadling Flickr pool for a future Photo of the Day.