Crumbling Beauty (or rather, actual places with soul)

As an old soul and design lover, I have a penchant for old places - cities from old empires when people actually cared about quality, craftsmanship and architecture - Rio de Janeiro, Mumbai, pretty much all of Brazil, Portugal and India as well as Turkey - I can walk around and wander forever in those cities and get lost in the neighborhoods, photographing the faded splendor in climates so tropical and humid that it wages a battle against any built structure. Art deco speaks to me as well as other styles and mixes. It even feels better - those who know what I'm talking about can tell the difference - you can feel the soul that went into the work. Here are a few glimpses from where I've roamed around...