Pont Vieux (Old Bridge) over the river Orbieu in Lagrasse, Aude (France)

L'autre hier, cheminant le long du vieux sentierJe parvins au cours d'eau qui fuit vers la savane
Le soleil déclinait, et l'horizon altier
Alignait les sapins comme une caravane

Évoquant le passé, je fis halte au vieux pont
Au vieux pont biscornu, plein de ronce et de mousse
Couché sur le ruisseau limpide et peu profond
Que brouillèrent les pas de mon enfance douce

From the song Le vieux pont

by Mes Auieux

Footbridge over the river Liuxi in Heqiao Ancient Town, Zhejiang (China)

The bright moon rises over the river.

The moon reminds me of my love who is deep in the mountains.
He is the moon walking across the sky
Do you hear me singing your name by the river?

Lyrics of a Chinese Folk Song

Henkersbrücke over the river Kocher in Schwabish Hall, Baden-Wurttenberg (Germany)

Ich bin ein Musikante
Und komm' aus Schwabenland ;
Wir sind auch Musikanten
Und komm'n aus Schwabenland
Ich kann spielen auf meiner Trompete ;
Wir können spielen auf uns'rer Trompete
I am a musician
And come from Swabia* land;
We are also musicians
And come from Swabia land.
I can play on my trumpet;
We can play on our trumpet

Folk song from Swabia

Bridge over the Skipton Canal Basin in Skipton, England (United Kingdom)

Chugging along, singing a song,

What's round the next bend I'll know before long

My hand on the tiller, I'll whistle and sing

Canals of Old England Carry Me On

My boat is a beauty all seventy feet

Straight as an arrow and painted so neat

Her name on the side, a cratch of bright red

Roses and Castles all round my head

At the end of the day, we tie up to rest

Go up to the pub for a pint of the best

I'll get out me squeezebox, sing you this song

Canals of Old England Carry Me On

Song Canals of Old England

Phil Underwood

Bridge house over a canal in Puerto de Mogán, Gran Canaria (Spain)

¿Quién, que en las Afortunadas,

por su fortuna, naciera,

viéndolas pobres, diezmadas,

de otro pueblo esclavizadas,

su libertad no quisiera?

.....

Ten esperanza en la vida

mientras lloras ti orfandad

entre cadenas sumida.

¡Ten valor madre querida,

que el progreso es libertad.”

Poem by Nicolás Estévanez Murphy

Puente del Milagro (Miracle Bridge) over the Mora River in Mora de Rubielos, Teruel (Spain) painted by Julio Monzón

"In 1870 a great storm made the Mora River waters reach the height of the Old Bridge , destroying its stone parapets; in the middle of the turbulent waters, only the pylon of the Virgin of the First Sorrow stood out, immutable, and since then it has been called the “Pylon of the Miracle”.

Legend

Sulfersteg over the Kocher River in Schwabish Hall, Baden-Wurtemberg (Germany)

Long ago in Schwäbisch Hall the town mill unexpectedly caught on fire. But thanks to cockcrow of a chicken trying to escape the burning mill, the saltstimmers nearby were able to immediately take action to save the mill and the whole town of Schwäbisch Hall.

Legend 

Old Bridge over the Salat River in Saint Girons, Ariège (France)

Sur le vieux pont verdi de mousse,
Et tout rongé de lichens roux,
Deux amants parlaient à voix douce :
Et c'était nous !

Lui, penché tendrement vers elle,
Lui disait l'amour et la foi
Qu'il portait en son cœur fidèle ;
Et c'était moi !
...

Poem by Auguste Angellier.

Ponte Santi crossing the Rio Mandracchio in Burano, Veneto (Italy)

The whole city is an extraordinary architectural masterpiece in which even the smallest building contains works by some of the world's greatest artists such as Giorgione, Titian, Tintoretto, Veronese and others... When a group of tiny islands were consolidated and organized in a unique urban system, nothing remained of the primitive topography but what became canals, such as the Giudecca Canal, St Mark's Canal and the Great Canal, and a network of small rii that are the veritable arteries of a city on water.

Venice and its Lagoon

UNESCO World Heritage Site

Bridge over the river Lauch in Colmar, Haut Rhin (France)

It is best to steer clear of the rue des Clefs at certain hours of the night. The street, by day a bustling shopping area  at nightfall becomes the haunt of a terrifying calf, the famous Colmar Nachtkalb. No one knows exactly how long he has been playing his evil tricks, lowing mightily from his hiding place and sometimes charging poor animals that have wandered away from the safety of their homes or tourists staggering out of the local wistubs, their bellies full of the local wine.

Legend of The beast of Colmar

Yongning Bridge over the Grand Canal of Xitang Ancient Town, Zhejiang (China)

East wind blow water sun hold hill
Spring come great be idleness
Fall flower scattered wine rail pendants tinkling
Playing and singing drunk dream inside
Pendant sound quiet evening dress lack
For whom organise jadeite hair
Accept successive brightness cherish red complexion
Dusk alone lean on railings

The East Wind Blows Over the Water

Poem by Li Yu

Bridge over a creek in Frías, Burgos (Spain)

Bajo un sol de fuego canta la chicharra
mientras en la tierra lucha el segador,
la cruz de una alondra, las nubes desgarra
llenando de trinos los campos en flor.
 
Espigas doradas de mies amarilla
le dicen amores al viento al pasar,
y en el viento se oye la voz de Castilla
es la vos de España que está en mi cantar.

Castile's hymn

San Cayetano Bridge over the Quiviesa River in Potes, Cantabria (Spain)

Los derrumbadores y horribles percipicios de nuestro cerebro se disipan y la dulce imagen de lo llano, de lo apacible, de lo apropiado a la existencia del hombre, llena nuestra mente. Todo se anuncia ya, ¡oh deseada Potes ! villa ílustre y señora de estos adustos lugares.

Benito Pérez Galdós

Roman Bridge over the Arade River in Silves (Portugal)

Oh meu ardente Algarve impressionista e mole,

Meu lindo preguiçoso adormecido ao sol,

Meu louco sonhador a respirar quimeras,

Ouvindo, no azul, o canto das esferas

- A marcha triunfal dos mundos pelo ar. –

Para te adormecer, Deus pôs-te perto o mar,

E, para fecundar a tua fantasia,

No vasto palco azul, erguido nos espaços,

Fez mais belo para ti o drama em oiro – o Dia,

E deu, pra te abraçar, à luz, mais fortes braços.

Romântico torrão de doidas fantasias,...

Poem by Joao Lucio

Roman Bridge over the Nuño Cojo Creek in Piedralaves, Avila (Spain)

"Gredos es algo extraordinario; es la suma de todas las cosas sanas y admirables que encierra el clima de montaña en todos sus aspectos y todas sus altitudes"

Gregorio Marañón

Puente Grande (Great Bridge) over the Iregua River in Villoslada de Cameros, La Rioja (Spain)

Ya se van los pastores

a la Extremadura,

ya se queda la sierra

triste y oscura.

Ya se van los pastores

ya se van marchando,

Más de cuatro zagalas

quedan llorando

Traditional song 

from Tierra de Cameros

Romanesque Bridge over the Sioule River in Menat, Puy-de-Dome (France)

"Let every man praise the bridge he goes over."

Proverb

Bridge in a village of Val Bregaglia, Graubunden (Switzerland) painted by Giovanni Giacometti

"My life is my art and my art is my life. This little tract of land closed in the narrow circle of mountains, is my universe... Every day the mysterious spectacle of life and its infinite beauty of nature is renewed before my eyes."

Giovanni Giacometti

Bridge over the Arc River in Lanslevillard, Savoie (France)

... Ils vont toujours. L'horizon s'ouvre immense,
Il se gonfle, il se perd, et toujours recommence ; 
Confus, inépuisable, il s'enfuit, reculant 
L'orageuse étendue au flot étincelant. 
Et les monts sur les monts s'accumulent sans cesse ; 
Le haut plateau succède au plateau qui s'abaisse, 
Bordant de ces créneaux lugubres, désolés, 
Les horizons de neige au clair azur mêlés. 
Le glacier, qui se roule en vagues cristallines, 
Allume aux feux du jour ses verdâtres collines.

Les Alpes

Poem from Fréderic Monneron

Bridge over the river Lys in Fontainemore, Aosta Valley (Italy) painted by Annick Terra Vecchia

Enjoy thy stream, O harmless fish;

And when an angler for his dish,

Through gluttony's vile sin,

Attempts, the wretch, to pull thee out,

God give thee strength, O gentle trout,

To pull the rascal in!

John Wolcot