Cathedral in Guadalajara, Mexico, November 1999

Two views of the main cathedral in Guadalajara, Mexico. Also known as the Catedral de la Asunción de María Santísima. Built in the Renaissance style with neo-gothic towers,the cathedral in its current incarnation dates from 1854. Damaged in earthquakes in 1932, 1957, 1985, 1995 and 2003, the cathedral is in some danger of partial collapse, its north tower tilting slightly and its dome's structure lightly damaged.

Notre Dame de Paris, Paris, France, August 1983

Notre Dame Cathedral on l'Île de la Cité in Paris, in the summer of 1983. Among the first buildings in the world to feature flying buttresses, the cathedral is considered one of the finest examples of French Gothic architecture in Europe. Construction began in 1163, and was largely completed in 1345. It was significantly vandalized during the French Revolution, but was subsequently restored to its "original" gothic state.

Houses of Parliament, Budapest, Hungary, July 2002

The Houses of Parliament in Budapest, Hungary, as seen from across the Danube River in Buda. Seven years after the creation of Budapest in the unification of three cities, construction of the palace began in 1885, to plans by Imre Steindl, and was completed in 1904. Architect Steindl, in a odd and cruel twist of fate, went blind before its completion.

The new-gothic palace, the largest Parliament in Europe, is 268 metres long and 96 metres high at its highest point. It consists of some 40 million bricks, half a million precious stones and 40 kg of gold. A red star that hung on the top of the dome during the communist era was taken down in 1990.

Washington Square, New York, August 2010

Washington Square in New York City's Greenwich Village. Originally a narrow marshy valley with a brook running through it, this tract of land on the island of Manhattan was occupied by native Americans until they were driven out by the Dutch in the mid-17th Century. The area became farmland, and eventually the Dutch turned plots of land over to slaves as reward for protecting the farms against native American attacks. These slaves were thus no longer slaves, though they were obliged to hand over part of the profits generated to the Dutch East India Company. The tract of land, dubbed The Land of the Blacks, remained in the possession of African Americans until 1664.

The turn of the 19th Century saw the land turned into a public burial ground, in which were interred particularly the remains of unknown or indigent people and, later on, those who had died in New York City proper from yellow fever. Though it was closed in 1825, to this day the remains of over 20,000 people rest under the square.

Galway, Ireland, August 1985

Outside Ballybrit race course during the Galway Races, held annually in the town on the west coast of Ireland. One of the largest horse-racing festivals in the world, the week-long event has been held here since 1869. W.B. Yeats wrote a poem in its honour:

There where the course is,

Delight makes all of the one mind,

The riders upon the galloping horses,

The crowd that closes in behind:

We, too, had good attendance once,

Hearers and hearteners of the work;

Aye, horsemen for companions,

Before the merchant and the clerk

Breathed on the world with timid breath.

Sing on: somewhere at some new moon,

We'll learn that sleeping is not death,

Hearing the whole earth change its tune,

Its flesh being wild, and it again

Crying aloud as the racecourse is,

And we find hearteners among men

That ride upon horses.

San Francisco Bay, August 2003

Boats sailing near Alcatraz Island in San Francisco Bay. The island was first documented by the Spaniard Juan Manuel de Ayala in 1775, who dubbed it the Island of the Pelicans (la Isla de los Alcatraces). The Rock served as a lighthouse and military fortification before being put to use as a federal prison, which remained in operation until 1963.

Cannes, France, January 2005

In a helicopter above Cannes, France.

Shediac, New Brunswick, August 2006

In front of the world's biggest lobster in Shediac, New Brunswick.

Palais des Papes, Avignon, January 2004

The Grand Chapel at the Palais des Papes in Avignon, France.

Iles-de-la-Madeleine, August 2007

On Île du Havre aux Maisons, from one of the few elevated locations in the Îles-de-la-Madeleine.

Lower 9th Ward, New Orleans, December 2010

Make It Right homes in New Orleans' Lower 9th Ward. This area was one of the most devastated by the floods that accompanied Hurricane Katrina in 2005; more than 4,000 homes were destroyed, and a great many of the ward's residents have still not been able to return. The Common Ground Collective has been active since shortly after the floodwaters receded, with its volunteers working to first gut and then rebuild homes, and providing support to residents. The Make It Right project involves a campaign to build 150 sustainable and flood-resistant houses in the ward.

Victoria Station, London, January 2006

London's Victoria Station.

New York City, August 2010

Radio City Music Hall in New York City. The art-deco 'Showplace of the Nation' was once the number-one tourist attraction in New York. It opened on December 27, 1932 with a stage show featuring Ray Bolger (later of Wizard of Oz fame) and dancer and choreographer Martha Graham. Intended as an attempt to return high-class variety entertainment to prominence, the show was widely seen as a failure. The venue later became the theatre of choice for premiere presentations of films from the RKO-Radio Studio.

Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island, August 2007

Pre-storm, on the waterfront in Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island.