The Lens–Artists photo challenge this week has a guest host, Viveka, whose topic is capitals.
On our road trips around the United States, we try to visit as many capitals as possible – not just the capital cities, but also their capitol buildings. I have a series of posts featuring some of the capitols we’ve visited lately. (Check them out in my archives – that’s why I’ve put the dates in below.) These are the ones that we have seen in the last 3 years.
ST. PAUL, MINNESOTA (May 2017)
Capitol exterior and its dome from inside
Some of the memorials and statues on the capitol grounds
BISMARCK, NORTH DAKOTA (May 2017)
Capitol building exterior (no, it doesn’t have a dome) and view of grounds from the top floor viewing area
Some famous North Dakotans
LINCOLN, NEBRASKA (May 2018)
Capitol exterior (the dome is at the top of this multistoried building), floor of the rotunda, visiting school group
Artwork viewed from the rotunda, including a colorful door
DENVER, COLORADO (June 2018)
Exterior and view from the dome
Stained glass portraits
SALT LAKE CITY, UTAH (June 2018)
Exterior and staircase
Slideshow of some of the sights inside
SANTA FE, NEW MEXICO (June 2018)
The capitol building in Santa Fe is shaped like the Zuni sun symbol, which is also depicted in the rotunda and on the state flag. The first two photos are a partial view of the exterior and one of the curved hallways.
The New Mexico capitol building has a lot of artwork by New Mexican artists. The slideshow shows some of them.
OKLAHOMA CITY, OKLAHOMA (June 2018)
The Oklahoma state capitol has the distinction of being the only capitol in the U.S. that has an oil rig visible at every cardinal direction. Two of these can be seen below. The middle photo is the dome from the rotunda, and the photo at right is a commemoration of Oklahoma’s native tribes, each of which has its own flag.
Sculpture, artwork, and artifacts in the capitol
DES MOINES, IOWA (Sept. 2018)
Capitol exterior and chamber of the legislature
Iowa’s capitol has colorful designs and patterns on its floors.
On the capitol grounds, there is a Holocaust memorial.
Interestingly, this post does not contain photos from my home state capital (Springfield, IL – I was last there in 2012) nor the capital of the state north of here, the state where I was born and I grew up (Madison, WI – I can’t remember the last time I visited the capitol).
I have also visited several foreign capitals in recent years (2017-2019), but not their government buildings – can you figure out which cities these are? One is a provincial capital, the others are national capitals.
Wanderlust & Wonderment 
Wow, what a fantastic entry … just wonderful. Let see if I can guess right; Vienna (have a friend that works is Hoburg Palace), Jerusalem, Paris, Amsterdam, Budapest – thanks for playing with me.
Also Cairo and Quebec City (the provincial capital) – 5 out of 7 is very good! Thanks for playing!