Tuesday, February 23, 2010

Cranes

Cranes, port of LivornoBefore leaving the Pisan soil we took some pictures of the port of Livorno from the other bank of the “Scolmatore”, the Arno River flood bypass canal and a border between the two municipalities. This is the cargo area of the port we never see, less picturesque of the old “Porto Mediceo”, but impressive in its own way.Cranes, port of LivornoBeyond the cranes and the light poles we can see the 54 meter tall Marzocco tower, built in the mid 15th century by the Medicis. The tower is completely covered in white marble and took its name from the lion symbol of the Florentine Republic.Cranes, port of LivornoFar away we can see the old cranes of the familiar part of the port.

See also: Layout of the Port of Livorno (Wikipedia)

19 comments:

Lowell said...

All those cranes! Impressive, the size of this port. And I love that Marzocco tower - it must be something to see in person!

Dina said...

Great how the old and the new co-exist.
Someone should make a whole blog about cranes. I would follow it!

Saretta said...

That beautiful old tower has been engulfed by the industrial zone! And you have more cranes than the city of Molfetta...I didn't think that was possible! :-)

Wolynski said...

There's a curious beauty to all these cranes - sign of a busy place. Lovely photos.

Hilda said...

Very interesting pattern they all make, especially in your first photo — so neat! I almost feel sorry for the Marzocco tower — it looks kind of lost.

Cezar and Léia said...

They are massive, I liked a lot that first picture with so amazing perspective!
Léia

Lois said...

The cranes are impressive and I really like that tower! I would to stand up there at the top and enjoy the view.

Halcyon said...

The cranes are a necessary evil I guess. I just think they are so un-attractive. Not what I picture in Italy at all! :)

B SQUARED said...

Those Medicis sure did a lot of construction. Most seems to have withstood the test of time.

James said...

The repeatative nature of the cranes and lamps are very nice.

This reminds me of when I was a teenager and in the navy. My ship was in a shipyard in San Diego California and there were cranes just like these. I remember talking to one of the operators and being amazed by how much he was being paid to just sit up there and wait. He was being paid triple his normal wage to sit for hours while the ship's supplies were en route, and his normal wage was very high.

stromsjo said...

I wonder how many of today's structures have been built to last five centuries.

Gunn said...

I can`t remember seeing so many cranes in one place.
The photo of the old cranes is my favorite.

Andreea said...

Nice shots. Are the cranes used for loading/unloading? I like the framing on the last one.

cieldequimper said...

Tuesday. We must be in Livorno. When were we in London? :-)

Unknown said...

I really like all the lines in these photos, VP. Even the cranes look interesting!

Kaori said...

I've seen these cranes around our port, too. They always remind me of giraffes. I love all those cranes in the last photo :)

Unknown said...

The tower is beautiful and you managed to show us great perspectives of the cranes.

Small City Scenes said...

A mechanical ballet. MB

Three Rivers, Michigan said...

The great tower now small compared to the giant light poles and the saluting cranes.
Three Rivers Daily Photo