aercascade

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I only took 1 photo of Swindon and Wiltshire Pride... And here is my reasoning for it.

I wanted to bloody well enjoy the event! So I did. It was the first Pride Event I had ever attended. It was so refreshing. It honestly felt like something else it was crazy.

It had such a positive energy, a single protester arrived to cause trouble and try to encite violence against themselves but you know what happened...

Fucking applauds. That was it.

No boos, no jeers, just clapping. This wasn't a "that happened" story. Literally, they clapped.

Source: https://twitter.com/Swindonwiltspri/status/1692053751702401082

The answer to hate is love and acceptance. There is nothing they can despise more than when they cry for violence to prove the LGBT+ evil. They get nothing to validate anything. I will take the high road, every, goddamn time!

It was pretty uneventful, police were enjoying an inflatable hockey booth and pizza. No trouble for anyone. It was so refreshing to see.

The nice guy doing the sign language was getting into and so full of energy it was superb. I really didn't want to leave. Hopefully next time I will be living in Swindon so worrying about buses isn't so much on the table! 😅

[aercascade]

Tented Market - Scrapbook

These are some more rougher photos, taken of the Tented Market before it's closure on the 31st of August 2017.

On a beautiful sunny day in 2017 I decided to visit the Tented Market for 1 last time before it's closure.

It had a special place in my heart as when I was a young child I remember my parents taking me here, it was a different time back then. The Tented Market was alive and well. The thriving market was a bastion for local businesses.

The pristine white roofs were well kept, bright and followed a theme of the town centre. It wasn't the only place to feature such decor, but over time it had been changed.

As the town of swindon grew, the Tented Market remained much the same. It was home to great local businesses but they could not survive against the competitors.

The council invested more into the Brunel Centre, and times changed; the local stores within this once welcoming structure could no longer compete. It was a time capsule still standing but barely.

Even outwardly, they had to remind people the place was still open. Signs were plastered all over the building. An attempt to save the doomed building.

It was clear that those left in this place still actively loved and appreciated the Tented Market. Unfortunately. It did little to save it.

What used to be a grand entrance to the Tented market, had nothing to advertise itself as a bustling store. It's no wonder they needed signs to remind the passersby that the place was still open.

At the staircase to one of the main entrances. It was so neglected, not even the typical unsavoury type had any desire to loiter here. It was that empty.

The placard sign commemorated the market being open for a grand total of 22 years. It's one reason why the closure of the Tented Market hit me.

There are definitely older shopping centres in Swindon. Though that's discrediting what the Tented Market was before this was built in 1994.

Obviously, this was well before my time. I have no photographs of the Tented Market in any other state.

Unfortunately I took 1 photograph of the Tented Market map. I wish I took more photographs of the Tented Market, but 2017 “me” was a bit more afraid of taking pictures inside businesses.

This map wasn't even accurate, there are more businesses that were on there than there should be. Ouch.

In one of the many empty shop spaces I saw a "SAVE OUR TENT MARKET" poster. One of many attempts to spare the market from closure.

Left, you can see the remains of the comic shop. On the right I can't remember what it was. At the only used entrance you could see 2 of the last remaining shops in the Tented Market.

In 2013 when I was still attending college I visited this place for lunch. At this time it was clearly on its way out but the Tented Market had it's share of visitors.

You could walk in here and smell the exotic food. I can say it was pretty good. At the time of this photo, it was nothing. Just an empty stall and a reminder of what was lost.

They still kept the bench and chair used by the very few customers who would wait for their order... yes. When I was at college it was the very chair I sat on waiting for my chicken wrap. Nothing had changed in that time.

It was still advertising the same menu available in 2013, Eggelicious was only a recent move. Setting sights on a new offering opening up in the Brunel Centre...

The Brunel Centre in this year (2017) was undergoing a drastic renovation to one of the interior corridors. They opened it up into a designated food hall. It seemed at this time Eggelicious decided to finally abandon the Tented Market and instead opt for the much newer food court instead.

Included is the photograph of them building the escalator to the new food hall still in progress.

I found some stickers that had accumulated on the door, A time capsule. Including a sticker that read "Never Trust a Hipster"

Here is a collection of empty doors, empty stores. Much appears the same.

For a time I can remember there existing an American Candy store. I can't say I'm surprised they didn't take off. The drink I had was so sugary and expensive... I'll stick to European snacks I think.

They still tried to get people on board. I hadn't taken note of what that sign said until today... I mean if they're still offering up a commercial space for £20 a week. I'd be down to set up a photography shop.

That's not half bad... if you ignore the fact this place is dead. Also not opening ever again.



That is the end of the Tented Market. There are whispers here and there of redevelopment. Like much of Swindon it's destined to become something else.

Something mid. That is.

That isn't all I have to show of Swindon. There are far more parts of the it to be documented!

~ Aercascade

[aercascade]

Introducing the Galleries in Aldershot, Taken August 2017. These are images I have kept on my DSLR for a while and thought I'd share.

Visiting Aldershot was a hugely drastic example of Urban Decay in action. It's clear the high street was at a breaking point during this year as even the plethora of discount stores were empty husks of their formerly bustling selves.

PoundWorld and PoundLand were both empty. A single chair occupying the now barren PoundWorld store. We call these "Chilling Chairs''

Death was inevitable, when even the discount stores couldn't survive. What hope is there for Antiques and Jewellers?

When taking this photo I was approached by a very kind gentleman who spoke about the sorry state of the shopping centre. Bringing up memories of a better time when the shopping centre was lively and busy.

It was at this point the hunger set in, I really fancied a bite to eat. I was reminded of the existence of the food chain "Wimpy Burger" . It was actually fantastic. I was still on my vegetarian kick so settled on a mushroom burger.

I would recommend visiting Wimpy... before you can't. The food isn't bad at all.

The Galleries were only partially open. Gated off was the second and barren half of The Galleries. The Roof leaking with wet floor cones trailing off into the distance.

For being devoid of any purpose here, this section of the galleries is surprisingly tidy despite the problematic ceiling. It's clear the ones still in charge are clinging onto a hope that maybe one day this forgotten space can be restored to its former glory.

Externally of the Shopping Centre was a sorry sight. The parking area was marked with warning posters and carried the same smell found in the Swindon Bus Station Toilets.

Even for 2017, there bore some archaic remnants of a past technology. Rusted, grotty and definitely not something I was about to verify if it still worked.

There were smaller shopping areas outside, for being a weekday in the summer holidays it was scarily dead. This was pre-pandemic, I can't imagine the state of Aldershot now but I would like to return again someday soon.

The last picture I am sharing, doing a bit of walking around I came across this abandoned building. I would never trespass into an abandoned building to show you all the inside, but the outside was sad enough.

I regret not asking the locals more about this place as I am not sure what it was before it became abandoned.



Thanks for checking out my post on Aldershot! I'll have some more content from other places including the Swindon Tented Market!