Out Around Rigel

The sun set behind the Grimaldi plateau, although the diurnal twilight lingered over the ocean. The sky was hazy blue, and deeper tinted waves rocked the whole Earth. For a long crescent, he hung over the horizon there, his light dimmed by sunlight, increasing from a thin crescent to a full disk three times wider than that of the setting sun.

Now, at dusk, a huge silver lamp hung over Nardos - the Beautiful City, built on the water. Light flashed above the tall white towers [296], above the ten-mile white adamantine bridge from Nardos to the coast and illuminated the beach on which we stood, with brightness almost the same as during the day.