Wednesday, June 26, 2013

Xanadu-ABC Wednesday "X"

Xanadu?





In Xanadu did Kubla Khan
A stately pleasure-dome decree :
Where Alph, the sacred river, ran
Through caverns measureless to man
Down to a sunless sea. (lines 1–5)

It wouldn't take much imagination to pretend that this could be the palace of Kubla Khan that Samuel Taylor Coleridge described in his poem, Xanadu.  It also wouldn't take much imagination after reading the entire poem to believe that the poet was probably smoking something and living in another world.

To see more "X" ABC Wednesday posts, go here.

19 comments:

  1. Well, I saw the musical last summer. Does that count?

    ReplyDelete
  2. Thanks for introducing this Poem to me. Smoke influenced or not the words and image are a delight!

    ReplyDelete
  3. What an amazing building. It looks like something in Mexico maybe.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Gosh..we are not in Kansas (St. Paul) anymore! Great use of X.

    ReplyDelete
  5. church? palace? quaint little summer cottage?

    ReplyDelete
  6. I remember that poem, I hadn't thought of it in years. This looks like a nice place to visit, but I wouldn't want to live there.

    ReplyDelete
  7. stunning building! what does it matter if Coleridge was smoking something, his words flow so beautifully.

    ReplyDelete
  8. We all seek our xanadu, our shangrala.
    ROG, ABC Wednesday team

    ReplyDelete
  9. It does look like a vision of beauty and very enjoyable place to rest.
    Ann

    ReplyDelete
  10. Oh, if only Earth were Xanadu!

    Leslie
    abcw team

    ReplyDelete
  11. Well, I think Coleridge was rather inclined that way...

    ReplyDelete
  12. Wherever is this?

    Haven't read Coleridge in ages. . .thanks for the, uh, flashback.

    ReplyDelete
  13. Except, uh, Xanadu is landlocked on the mongolian grasslands... ;)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Evidence of large water control works instigated to protect the city exists in the form of remains of the Tiefan’gan Canal.

      Delete
  14. Too gaudy for me.

    ReplyDelete
  15. Haha! Enjoyed all the above comments Kate, amazing piece of architecture.

    ReplyDelete
  16. As I recall, Coleridge admitted in the preface of the poem that it was written after waking from opium-influenced dreams. Personally, I don't think I could live in something this sprawling.

    ReplyDelete

Thanks for visiting my blog; I appreciate it! Come back often!!