Luminous Landscape Forum
The Art of Photography => User Critiques => Topic started by: -Tom- on March 18, 2014, 11:43:55 pm
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Haludovo Palace Hotel, known at one point as Penthouse Adriatic Club casino in Croatia...rotting away.
Introductory before-after
(http://farm3.staticflickr.com/2894/13256776773_028bb1fd12_c.jpg) (http://www.flickr.com/photos/tomislavmavrovic/13256776773/)
Hotel Haludovo - Before and After (http://www.flickr.com/photos/tomislavmavrovic/13256776773/) by Tomislav▲Mavrovic (http://www.flickr.com/people/tomislavmavrovic/), on Flickr
A touch of brutalism
(http://farm4.staticflickr.com/3806/13252402145_7a23035bfd_c.jpg) (http://www.flickr.com/photos/tomislavmavrovic/13252402145/)
Beams of concrete (http://www.flickr.com/photos/tomislavmavrovic/13252402145/) by Tomislav▲Mavrovic (http://www.flickr.com/people/tomislavmavrovic/), on Flickr
(http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7275/13252592403_7867c4c312_c.jpg) (http://www.flickr.com/photos/tomislavmavrovic/13252592403/)
Brutalist (http://www.flickr.com/photos/tomislavmavrovic/13252592403/) by Tomislav▲Mavrovic (http://www.flickr.com/people/tomislavmavrovic/), on Flickr
(http://farm4.staticflickr.com/3800/13252614083_e4abbef27c_c.jpg) (http://www.flickr.com/photos/tomislavmavrovic/13252614083/)
Concrete symmetry (http://www.flickr.com/photos/tomislavmavrovic/13252614083/) by Tomislav▲Mavrovic (http://www.flickr.com/people/tomislavmavrovic/), on Flickr
(http://farm4.staticflickr.com/3682/13252796864_9b7db1ab15_c.jpg) (http://www.flickr.com/photos/tomislavmavrovic/13252796864/)
Brutalist beams (http://www.flickr.com/photos/tomislavmavrovic/13252796864/) by Tomislav▲Mavrovic (http://www.flickr.com/people/tomislavmavrovic/), on Flickr
(http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7049/13252557215_ee96c8b373_c.jpg) (http://www.flickr.com/photos/tomislavmavrovic/13252557215/)
Beams of Hotel Palace (http://www.flickr.com/photos/tomislavmavrovic/13252557215/) by Tomislav▲Mavrovic (http://www.flickr.com/people/tomislavmavrovic/), on Flickr
(http://farm3.staticflickr.com/2847/13252826094_53296a370b_c.jpg) (http://www.flickr.com/photos/tomislavmavrovic/13252826094/)
Help (http://www.flickr.com/photos/tomislavmavrovic/13252826094/) by Tomislav▲Mavrovic (http://www.flickr.com/people/tomislavmavrovic/), on Flickr
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nice group/essay
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The suicidal 'diving boards' are an interesting piece of brutalism. Wonder how many [drunk] people tried to jump into the pool via them?
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Fascinating set of photos and a great place to explore. Thanks for sharing them.
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Fascinating set of photos and a great place to explore. Thanks for sharing them.
Exactly, it reminds me a bit some of decaying buildings around the Salton Sea area.
I always was under the impression that Croatia's tourism was booming and that a situation like the abandoned casino couldn't exist. Anyway, it looks like a very interesting place and these photos convey the spirit of the place.
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Fascinating set of photos and a great place to explore. Thanks for sharing them.
+1. I particularly like "concrete symmetry".
Jeremy
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Great series!
I'd wish to visit this location with some flash units at dawn and trying crazy stuff ...
Cheers
~Chris
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I particularly like #4.
Dave
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Those are awesome!
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... I always was under the impression that Croatia's tourism was booming and that a situation like the abandoned casino couldn't exist...
Indeed.
For those who have not clicked on the Flickr link, here is Tom's caption (partial, edit and emphasis mine):
Haludovo Palace Hotel, known at one point as Penthouse Adriatic Club casino, was one of the most prestigious and elite Mediterranean tourist resorts of the 70's and 80's....
But the hotel is far from alive. The 90s breakdown of Yugoslavia introduced the concept of ownership transfer, better know as privatization. The entire Haludovo Hotel Complex went into private hands in the early 90s and it kept working on a minimal level up until its complete shutdown in 2001.
For the past 13 years the complex has been subjected to destruction and looting.
Tom,
For years we've been told that private ownership is the key to motivation and prosperity. Hence the hurried privatization in all former socialist/communist countries. For years I enjoyed staying in Croatian "socialist" hotels, with little to complain about. Whatever complaints we might had, we attributed them to a collective/workers ownership and would say "If only it were private, this or that would not have happened."
What the heck happened there?
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What happened, Slobodan, was that this neat "socialist" development was more than the market could bear, but as long as enough other people's money remained in the till the government could pretend the place was a going concern. When they finally ran out of other people's money and dumped their overblown development onto the economy the true state of affairs showed up with a bang, and the beautiful "socialist" development crumped. The free market works just fine as long as it's free. The question you have to ask is: had the market been free from the beginning, would any private entrepreneur have been dumb enough to sink money into a development like this.
Oohhh... I'm so glad you're back with us.
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What happened, Slobodan, was that this neat "socialist" development was more than the market could bear...
That's the paradox I am questioning, Russ. Croatia was (and I assume still is) a prosperous tourist region, large and attractive enough to sustain an opulent casino like this.
... had the market been free from the beginning, would any private entrepreneur have been dumb enough to sink money into a development like this...
But apparently, the was one "dumb enough" to buy it? Or maybe there wasn't "one." Maybe the privatization meant vouchers distributed to hotel employees: "Here you go, you are now a proud owner of 1/xxxx of the hotel... go ahead, take good care of it." If so, it would not be much different than before, as in the workers self-management system existing in former Yugoslavia, employees were already in that position.
On the other hand, you make it sound as if dumb investment mistakes are only made in socialism. I can show you dozens of those just in my vicinity (here, in the States, "the freest market on Earth").
Oh, almost forgot... according to Tom's description on Flickr, the casino was "paid for by Penthouse founder Bob Guccione."
Oohhh... I'm so glad you're back with us.
Don't tell me you had no one to argue with? ;)
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On the other hand, you make it sound as if dumb investment mistakes are only made in socialism.
I'd never be dumb enough to suggest that, but when a private person or a corporation makes a dumb investment he or they make it with their own money and eventually pay the price. When a socialist government makes that kind of investment the people under the heel of the government pay the price -- except the dictators at the top.
Oh, almost forgot... according to Tom's description on Flickr, the casino was "paid for by Penthouse founder Bob Guccione."
I think that's just beautiful. I'm so glad to hear he was the one screwed!!! It ought to warrant an article with pictures in the mag.
Don't tell me you had no one to argue with? ;)
No, I found a few arguments worth getting into but you've always been on the top of my argument heap. most of the folks on here -- except you and I -- go out of their way to be innocuous and nice.
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...most of the folks on here -- except you and I -- go out of their way to be innocuous and nice.
Oh, the horror. Also, one need not follow from the other. Carry on...
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This casino looks nice. I like hotels with casinos. Poker is my hobby so when I relax at hotels I to play poker. When I travel the fact that there is a casino in the hotel is the most important. So when I will go to Croatia most probably I will choose this hotel. I am playing too much online at [link deleted], so I want to play in real life when I am vacation. I am playing online when I don’t have time to drive to casino.
[Moderator's edit: link to what I assume is a casino site of some kind deleted]
Jeremy
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Appears to be gone from the web
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Appears to be gone from the web
All I get are feathered birds with real wings.
I don't even remember the thread.
I think things like the original Playboy Clubs were fine in big cities with urban guys with lots of loot to blow. I don't see how any "tourist" resort can host them for long: tourists don't usually have much spending cash. They are usually young, single, randy and broke (hence the all-included beer-swiller set) or married with kids and on a tether - a tight one. Or it all goes on dope.
Apart from that, I think it was a phenomenon that has passed its time. Like Photography. ;-) Or should that be ;-( ?
Rob
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just like our teenage and young adult years.. never to be repeated but never forgotten.
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just like our teenage and young adult years.. never to be repeated but never forgotten.
For myself, there were two stages that stand out still: my late teens and early twenties, and then my mid-forties to mid-sixties. After that, life and health began to call the tune. In between there was a lot of working and worrying about keeping telephones also working.
I was thinking about the pensions business yesterday, and it struck me that if it is like other businesses and in it to make money, then you must inevitably end up paying in more than you will ever draw out.
Rob
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on the average, yes. Same as for health insurance. some seldom get ill, many do. So the healthy support the not so healthy. Spreading the risk exposure. But for the individual, each should get back what was paid into the pension. The only reason to not get it all back is you expire or someone changes the rules.
My grandfather was under a traditional pension annuity with a company here in the US for 30 years. He retired at 65 and lived retired longer than he worked. He was paid his pension money every month until the last. They had to make up the difference. Due to inflation, it wasn't that much effectively, but they still paid.
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Nice photos, looks like a great casino
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Nice photos, looks like a great casino
Agree, I think it was an awesome casino!
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Thanks for sharing these photos, there are awesome. I regret that I couldn't visit it. I used to play in casinos, but I started to play online, but don't regret this, as online casinos always offer a lot of bonuses, sometimes I was winning money without risking my own money. However, I choose the sites very attentively as there are many scammers, mainly I follow this site https://www.canadacasinoplay.com (https://www.canadacasinoplay.com) as it always shows the new sites on the market.