Luzia Pimpinella Makes Magic

So I was reading through some blogs the other night, enjoying stories and pictures at some of my favorite sites. I was just opening a fresh page when a word leaped out at me and captured my attention.

Now when I say "a word," I literally mean one word. Well, okay, maybe three words - I'll explain that in a minute. But here's the thing. The blog in question, called Luzia Pimpinella, is written in German. I had not even had a chance to hit the translate button before this word jumped into my eyeballs and spiked my adrenalin.

Zagreb.

Six months ago, that word would have meant almost nothing to me. But thanks to my spring study of European countries and capitals, I now know that Zagreb is the capital of Croatia, located in the mysterious (to me) land of the Balkans.

Immediately, I was smitten.

The two words immediately following, floating islands of English in a sea of German, were "Abandoned Places."

Screeeeeeech. My blog-flipping brain slammed on the brakes. What exactly had I stumbled onto?

Here's the long and short of it. Nic, the friendly and interesting woman who writes the blog, had taken part in an HTC-sponsored event in Zagreb, Croatia.  Along with other photographers, she was given a hot little phone, escorted to crazy cool spots around the city, all featuring plenty of urban decay, and invited to take photos to her heart's content.

Check out just a few of her amazing captures:

Amazing, aren't they?

I recommend that you hop on over to her post and see the full story here. There are tons more photos, each one more amazing than the next. And Nic fills in lots of details about how the event unfolded and all the amazing places she visited on the tour around Zagreb. If you need it, there is a translate button on the left sidebar of her page.

I think you will really enjoy her story and photos. I certainly did.


And thank you, Nic, for allowing me to share your story here. I never imagined that I would one day know a red-haired photographer from Hamburg who can make magic from ruined buildings, but I am certainly glad you stumbled into my life.