You might ask why I would focus on “urban” as the theme for Sunday Stills this week. Most of you know I live in a rural area of Washington, having moved from a suburban area of Sacramento in 2020. While my images of urban are the focus, I’ll compare those to images of rural and suburban. Trust me, it was a challenge for me to find some good urban images.
Without city centers, there would be very little to draw populations to the areas. But as the model shows, changes shift concentrically outward as neighborhood areas evolve or devolve. The city center is prime real estate for businesses, while the outer rings suggest real estate prices rise as they progress toward the suburbs. Conversely, many folks flee to rural areas as they desire to reduce stress, retire, or seek a change in lifestyle.
The pandemic caused a major shift in lifestyle for many. When we lived in the RV park for two months from the end of January to mid-March in 2021, I was astounded at how many campers were living there. Like us, some were awaiting their homes to be built, others were there for temporary work, while others (including families with children) had sold their homes and bought RVs to live in. I’ve also seen it all within a few miles of where we live. Just a few blocks away, there are people living in old single-wide mobile homes, in tiny houses, or have parked their RVs in the woods and really living off the grid! How the latter get away with it is unknown to me.
Urban Views
Despite my living 30 miles from the city center of downtown Spokane, Washington, we visit frequently for family gatherings and events.
On March 10, I had shared that we attended the Broadway musical, Wicked, at the First Interstate Center for the Arts located in Downtown Spokane along the south bank of the Spokane River adjacent to the Spokane Convention Center. Being the second night of the performance, the Pavilion (built for the 1974 World’s Fair in Riverfront Park) was lit up in green.
It was so nice to see the lobby of the First Interstate Center for the Arts and look up at the huge figures hanging from the ceiling. I doubt if we should see this in the ‘burbs or in our rural library!
The featured image shows a filtered view of the Convention Center area. Spokane has one of the most beautiful downtowns on the West Coast. Ringed with mountains covered in evergreens, the streets boast brick buildings and both modern and historical architecture. The mighty Spokane River flows through the center of downtown where you will find Riverfront Park. Spokane is known nationally for its tech and healthcare industries.
Spokane is also home to the country’s largest urban waterfall. Spring snowmelt is underway!
“Moving to Spokane will put you in the second-largest city in Washington state and also in a charming community that is a perfect mix of urban vibes and natural beauty.” ~ Cross Country Moving Company
If you follow the March Madness NCAA College Basketball playoffs, you may have heard of Gonzaga University which is situated just north of downtown. Gonzaga men’s team was ranked #1 in the tournament but lost to 4th seed Arkansas Razorbacks in the Sweet 16.
With Gonzaga’s notoriety the last two years, and other economic factors, the Spokane/Coeur D’Alene areas are now high on the list of places to move, causing a hot housing market. Many are lucky to find homes for rent and for sale and prices have skyrocketed. Spokane law enforcement agencies are struggling to hire more sheriffs because once hired, they can’t find housing nearby.
At a recent doctor’s appointment last week, I caught a touch of spring in the air while admiring the urban architecture.
That is the URBAN Spokane I love. Sometimes I can’t believe that within less than 30 miles from downtown Spokane, I am in the land of rural living.
Next, I will share views of various marinas from my gallery that depict urban, suburban, and rural marinas.
Urban Marinas
I have always loved the views of the marinas in the San Diego harbors as you see below.
Suburban Marinas
As I scrolled through my images, I found suburban marinas as well.
Rural Marinas
It seems more likely to find marinas in rural areas rather than in suburban areas. People love boating and being on the water, so marinas are pretty much anywhere.
Poppies bloom at the Sherman Island Marina (Sacramento delta). I sure miss seeing California poppies!
“The promise of spring’s arrival is enough to get anyone through the bitter winter!” ― Jen Selinsky
Just for fun, I had to throw this old urban image in, taken years ago in San Francisco, since the street bears my last name.
Photo Challenges this Week
Each week I am inspired by my fellow bloggers’ photo challenges. I find it fun to incorporate these into my Sunday Stills weekly themes.
- Cee’s Flower of the Day
- Dawn’s Spring Festival
- Graham’s Island
- Hammad’s Weekend Sky
- Jez’ Water, Water Everywhere
- Johnbo’s CellPic Sunday
- Marsha’s PPAC (downtown Prescott)
- Marsha’s Writers Quotes Wednesday
Sunday Stills Photo Challenge Reminders
Sunday Stills weekly challenge is easy to join. You have all week to share and link your post.
- Remember to title your blog post a little differently than mine.
- Please create a new post for the theme or link a recent one.
- Entries for this theme can be posted all week.
- Tag your post “Sunday Stills.”
- Don’t forget to create a pingback to this post so that other participants can read your post.
- I also recommend adding your post’s URL into the comments.
This Week’s Featured Bloggers
Sunday Stills is a wonderful community of bloggers and photographers who desire to connect with one another. Below are this week’s links from bloggers who shared their urban-inspired photos. I edit these all week as new links are added.
- YOUR NAME HERE!
- Always Write
- Between the Lines
- Calling All RushBabes
- Cats and Trails and Garden Tales
- Cee’s Photo Challenges
- Deb’s World Image shared in comments
- Easin’ Along
- Graham’s Island shares two Hawaiian urban perspectives
- Hugh’s Views and News Image shared in comments
- Light Words
- Loving Life
- Natalie the Explorer
- Now At Home
- Once Upon A Time and Happily Ever After
- Philosophy Through Photography
- Photos By Jez
- Southwest Rambler
- Stevie Turner
- That Travel Lady in Her Shoes
- This is Another Story
- Travel With Me
- Wide Eyed Wonderings
- Woolly Muses
- Working On Exploring
Due to travel, I will take a two-week break from Sunday Stills on April 3rd and 10th. We are driving with the trailer to Leavenworth, WA, and camping in a nearby KOA campground. My experience tells me that wi-fi can be spotty at best. You can bet there will be a new crop of photos to share. Next time we meet it will be for the monthly color challenge on April 17.
Please check out my Sunday Stills page for details.
I’m excited to see how you will interpret “urban” this week. Thank you to everyone who linked to daylight in black and white last week.
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