Amsterdam The central library: the big and the small

Libraries are a special interest to many tourists visiting big European cities like Amsterdam. The term ‘public library’ is common in many countries. It usually denotes one big library, but that’s not the case in Amsterdam! The Openbare Bibliotheek Amsterdam, Oosterdokskade 143 (or in English: Public Library Amsterdam) is not just one library, it is rather a collective name for many public libraries in Amsterdam. 28 public libraries are present in Amsterdam alone along with 43 lending points, such as in hospitals. In total, Openbare Bibliotheek Amsterdam has more than 1.7 million books and 165,000 members and lent out 5 million books in 2005 alone! The largest of these libraries is called the central library (not of Amsterdam!) or the Centrale Bibliotheek in Dutch. It is located east to the Amsterdam Central Station and considered the largest public library in the whole Europe. This is a place where you can read daily newspapers and publication, even on the weekends! The library is open on the 7 days of the week from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. Also it has a small restaurant in Amsterdam with a terrace, the thing which makes it quite a nice place to start your morning in Amsterdam. Breakfast in your Amsterdam hotel, select your coffee and your newspaper, and there you go! If you like the library books and you wish to borrow some I guess you’ll have to do some registration. However, borrowing and returning books is fully automated.

San Francisco Hotel des Art

 

The San Francisco Hotel des Art is a stylish and fashion hotel in San Francisco is located on the cable car route next to Chinetown and downtown. At the Hotel des Art the rooms may be small and frill free, but they’re filled with big statement modern art from known artists and emerging artists of San Francisco.

The price per night includes a continental breakfast and the free wi fi access. The San Francisco Hotel des Art is really a good place to stay if you are an artist or not, but anyway you can experience the taste of a cultural background.

Discover Vancouver

Vancouver in western Canada is named after Captain George Vancouver of the British Royal Navy. However, Captain Vancouver was not the first european to visit the area. The coasts had already been explored by the Spanish. Captain Vancouver did not spend many days there, even though he was warmly welcomed by the local people and the scenery amazed him and everyone else who was travelling with him. The scenery still amazes visitors to the city of Vancouver today. First-time visitors who are in search of breathtaking views are usually directed to a beach which is about ten minutes from the city centre. There, looking out over the sailing boats racing across the blue water, visitors see Vancouver’s towering skyline backed by the magnificient North Shores Mountains. Then they sigh and say, “It’s so beautiful that I want to stay forever!” You can’t blame them. The city is regularly picked by international travel associations as one of the world’s best tourist destinations. They are only confirming what the two million residents and eight million tourists visiting Greater Vancouver a single year already know: there is simply no other place on earth quite like it. It’s not just the gorgeous setting where mountains meet the sea that appeals to people, but also Vancouver’s wide range of sporting, cultural and entertainment facilities.

Brazil between beaches and Amazon forest

Brazil is a vast country that offers something for everyone to do on a trip to Brazil. This is why a trip to Brazil has different implications for different people. Some people take it as an opportunity to enjoy the miles of white sandy beaches while others enjoy it to experience the wonders of the Amazon. There are also tourists who enjoy a travel to Brazil where they get to enjoy the historical charm of cities like Ouro Preto. There are other people who prefer to travel to Brazil just to get an opportunity to enjoy the music, culture and heritage Brazil has to offer to tourists. You can not only enjoy the allures of Rio de Janeiro, but you can also enjoy the taste of a fresh caipirinha while relaxing in the beaches and resorts of Brazil. The best way you can enjoy all that Brazil has to offer you is to plan your trip wisely. Look through Brazilian travel guides, or do a search on Google to learn about the different areas of interest in Brazil. With the specific information and descriptions you are provided, you will be able to plan your trip and itinerary accordingly. Of course, you can also contact your travel agents for tips and suggestions on your trip to Brazil. They are all pretty well versed with the places of interest in Brazil, and will thus be competent enough to provide you with guidance in choosing the right trip to travel to Brazil with. If you plan to travel to Brazil and cover different states and areas of Brazil, it proves to be better for you to carry a Brazilian road map with you wherever you go. You can buy this map on reaching Brazil, which proves to be very helpful to you when you travel in Brazil. If you are on a budget trip to Brazil, mind you, it is rather difficult to dictate the exact budget you have to expect in Brazil. This is because individual likes, dislikes, specific travel plans and minimum requirements tend to differ; which in turn makes it difficult to actually make a quote for a budget. Brazil is larger than the United States, its living costs including transportation, lodging and food differs greatly within the different cities and areas of Brazil. Even the time of year you decide to travel to Brazil will affect your cost and trip to Brazil. Though surprising, sometimes the costs associated in larger cities can be less expensive in small towns. Then of course, some things are available at a bargain in small towns, and cost much more in the bigger cities. The price range all depends on who you buy your products form, where all the buying is done and when you Visit Brazil. So it can be seen that if you wish to travel to Brazil, you can save lots of money and time, and make the maximum of your trip by planning your trip well in advance, and after lots of research.

Beijing the hub of China

Beijing, China is the hub of China with its financial, media, entertainment, shopping, fashion and cuisine all bringing together an immense amount of history, culture and style. Beijing brings together the best of East meets West and offers an innovative look into the future. Known as a technology and financial capital of the world, Beijing is blazing trails in building their economy and offers a new kind of life to their people. When considering the points of interest to see when visiting China consider the new and fresh, not only the ancient and historical. While, China’s rich history is everywhere, if you look their present and future will pop out and inspire you to learn more. One of these areas is the Ju Jun housing development.

Getting around in Montreal

 

Montreal is one of the easiest cities to navigate in general. Whether you are going anywhere by foot or some other form of transportation don’t worry, you can be hardly lost!

St. Laurent Blvd, which is locally known as “The Main”, is an important landmark as it divides the city into east and west.

To make it much easier to residence and first-time visitors, beginning from St. Laurent the street numbers on east-west arteries like the famous St. Catherine Street correspond to the number of blocks. The numbering starts from St. Laurent. This means, for example, that “1000 St. Catherine East” is located ten blocks east of St. Laurent.

As for the subway or the Metro, Montreal is famous for its subterranean network which is considered as an “Underground City” on its own! Twenty miles of underground walkways connect Metro trains with office buildings, shopping complexes, museums, movie theatres, and other attractions. This enhances the quality of Montreal being a walking-friendly city, even in the harsh winter.

Four lines of the Metro run every 3 to 12 minutes, depending on line, day, and hour. The Metro is also open for other means of transportation to be transported via its cars! Up to four bicycles at a time are permitted on the first car of the metro during certain hours and days.

As for buses, they are also a cheap, safe, and reliable way to get around Montreal.You can check online for fares and schedules.

Metered taxis are available throughout the city for $1.45 CAD per kilometer, but they are rarely used due to the convenience of the other means of transportation.

Eating in London

 

When it comes to eating in London, don’t get drifted by the famous say that the English cuisine is the worst in Europe! To be fair, food in London can be dreadful, and can be fantastic. Although it is not really cheap, yet you can get something decent to eat for about £10 a head. But in case you’re targeting high quality or quantity then get ready to spend double that!

That’s because the people in London believe that eating well costs much. A good restaurant maybe translated into £50/$90 a head!

I think that the best strategy to use while you are in an expensive city like London is simply to survive without injuring your wallet or digestive system. You should indeed save your money for more than just food, yet you can’t compromise the ’safety’ of the food either!

As not all the Britain are rich and luxurious people, there are a number of perfectly good, safe and cheap restaurants where the regular people eat regularly!

Another thing that you should be aware of in case you have some issue concerning alcohol is that they English social life revolves around alcohol! So it going to be a little difficult if you take alcohol in moderation as recovering from alcoholism or for religious reasons.

To find a restaurant and for general advice there’s a famous guide called Harden’s Guide, which is now online having a restaurant finder search engine which works by price, locale and cuisine.

Visit San Marino Republic

I LOVE SHOPPING like wrote in her exhilarating books Sophie Kinsella.If you also like it I’ll take you with me in a real “shopper’s Paradise”: The San Marino Republic.

Far only 5 minutes from the Coast of Romagna (Rimini for example) San Marino it’s geographically inside Italy but has his own government (but you can visit it without passport) and it’s, because of a lot of things, a very peculiar place. We first will visit San Marino’s City that’s the capital of this republic, the third and the more ancient city, that overtops all the Republic from the head of Monte Titano and is accessible through four ancient doors. We can visit the three medieval “pens” (three towers, symbol of the Republic) the Basilica where are conserved Saint Marino’s reliquies, Santa Chiara’s Monastery, the Door and the Church of Saint Francesco, “contrada Ombrelli” and the little square of Titano. At last we can go to the Public Square of the Freedom, where we’ll find the Public Palace and a terrace with an exceptional view. Anyway during our visit, how I said at first, we can also freely express our attitude to shopping in every possible way! All the paths of San Marino’s centre are interspersed by a lot of little stores full of the must incredible things: there you can find almost everything you was looking for, and something you probably would never suspect that exists: for example lighters in different shapes (cars, guns, guitars and any strange thing you can imagine). But if we have more serious exigences, and little more time at our disposition, all around the nine Castels and in all the little cities of San Marino’s Republic we’ll find Outlets, Commercial centers and many shops with interesting windows and we can buy clothes, shoes, perfumes and cosmetics, homeopathic products, electronics, musical instruments and even fuel, all that at a very low price thanks at the very reasonable fiscal condition of this Republic. Enjoy your holiday

Festivals in Portugal

One of the most famous festivals to be held in Portugal is the Harbour and Music festival. It is to be held in Lisbon on February 2-28 and is a celebration of Fado traditional folk culture. Believed to have developed from the sailors of the seventeen hundreds who use to express their sadness and anxiety of not seeing those they love when they go out to sea for months. There will be a lot of music signing and experiencing of the times past. This is a great experience for visitors.

The Lisbon Carnival is another popular event in Portugal and is held annually from February 2-24. This carnival features parades through the streets of the city and there are usually a lot of dancing and great music. There will also be floats and a number of parties across Lisbon. A totally enjoyable event the Lisbon carnival is 23 days of celebrations and entertainment and it culminates on the last day with the “Entrudo”.

The city of Loule hosts one of the most popular events in the country and that is the Loule carnival. This event will take place on February 21-25. The carnival dates back some 100 years and is eagerly awaited by residents and visitors every year. There will be a parade with many costumes and music.

A leap in Panama

The film “The tailor of Panama”, taken from a novel by John le Carré, is the best film that manages to capture Panama atmosphere. Who has never seen it therefore, will be astonished by the vision of a forest of skyscrapers where the Corredor Sur, the Southern Highway that connects the Tocumen airport to Ciudad de Panama, enters the city. You have the impression to be in Miami or the Monte Carlo moved into the tropical area with its large, luxurious hotels where you can find the social life core, made by the glittering glass towers of international banks, the luxury penthouses in Paitilla Villa overlooking the Pacific Ocean and Avenida Balboa, the sparkling waterfront on the beautiful bay. Flickering in the background heat green islands and the San Felipe promontory, the Casco Viejo, the old part of Panama, a low profile, smooth and elegant that recalls, in the distance, the Spanish colonial seventeenth century, dominated by the white towers of the Cathedral Iglesia de San Francisco.

Art expositions in Paris

Beatriz Milhazes
April 4> 21 June 2009

photography

For the exhibition at the Cartier Foundation, the Brazilian artist Beatriz Milhazes present a selection of paintings, but also an installation on the facade of the building, commissioned specially for the occasion. Consist of a superposition of abundant ornaments, paintings are vivid and hypnotic reference to colonial baroque, to modernism and Brazilian folk art.

William Eggleston, Paris
April 4> 21 June 2009

photography

The The American photographer William Eggleston presents a series of photographs of Paris, commissioned by the Fondation Cartier. The great master of color photography shows through his work the many facets of the city, revealing the picturesque and cosmopolitan, the sublime and the trivial, the everyday and the extraordinary.

Christmas markets in Munich, Germany

Christmas markets are popular in many places and nations, but I particularly remember the few days I spent a couple of years ago in Munich, Germany, around the end of the year. I did not think it was such easy to to find a Christmas market fitting everybody taste.
Practically all the month round you can go from Marienplatz (with workshops for children) to Wittelsbacher Platz with its Medieval Christmas Market with gospel singing where you can find a celktic arcade, gothic stalls and other wooden kiosks, a replica of medieval market architecture.
Not to forget the Christmas Market at Schwabing or the one at Chinesischer Turm (English Garden), the Pasinger Christkindlmarket in front of the Church Maria Schutz and and the creches exhibition close to Castle Blutenburg.
I remember that I could have visited up to some 20 Christmas markets (although some of the only last a few days), included the gay Christmas market, friendly called Pink Christmas.
Christmas for everybody and every taste.

Vic, a special market in Catalonia

An optimum way to discover a country and its tradition is certainly to spend some time in a local market.
And I would like to indicate a particular market which takes place in Vic, in Catalonia.
According to tradition the market has been existing since year 875 and takes place twice a week, on Tuesdays and on Saturdays, on Vic Plaza Mayor.
But the most particular market in Vic takes place on the Saturday before Palm Sunday, one week before Easter. On that day the Plaza Mayor and the Carrer Verdaguer are full of stalls sending palms and laurels decorated and made up in many different ways.
Vic is only a short way from Barcelona and it’s surely worth a visit.

England

music

England is absolutely attractive in the eyes of everyone who visits its shores. It has various events and festivals that provide a lot of fun to many audiences.

The people of England will celebrate the Bath International Music Festival from May 1, 2009 up to June 30, 2009. Bath is going to host its International music Festival, which will feature some eclectic music program that covers the whole thing from Jazz to traditional performances. The festival usually opens with a free outdoor concert that mostly attracts an enthusiastic and large crowd. This event assures to give the most pleasurable activities for the entire family through its workshops, projects, education, talks and walks. With its wealthy Roman history and a number of parks, restaurants, galleries, and museums, the amazing world heritage town of Bath will be providing you with a great place for this musical show, which can be considered as one of the city’s most significant events.

The Grange Park Opera festival is another significant event that will be celebrated in Northington, England. This will start from June 1, 2009 and will end on August 31, 2009. This Grange Park Opera Festival will feature performances of many classical operas. This is recognized as one of the Jewels in the opera calendar of England.

At the end of June, 2009 the Hyde Park will hosts a wireless festival. This is the latest addition to the England music calendar. This is a fun festival music act with activities and side shows appealing to the entire family.

Malibu luxury hotels

hotel

California was a sun & surf paradise for Hollywood jet set. Today it is becoming a luxury resorts crowded with extra luxury hotels like Casa Malibu Inn in Carbon Beach or Malibu Beach Inn.
Someone says: “When rich people move in an area, they are used to improve it and make of it a nobler place. But when those rich people are billionaires, I don’t know what can ever happen. These billionaires want to create an holiday destination to attend themselves, a marine where California culture about surf is born and that every weekend homes most part of Hollywood moguls. Here, 25 miles away from Beverly Hills, they walk on Carbon Beach’s white sand and meet with each other to discuss about their business.
Malibu Beach Inn is the perfect kind of hotel for Malibu city: a luxurious, relaxing and comfortable accommodation. Spend a night in Malibu Beach Inn costs circa 850$; you can rent a 55 metres wide suite with sight on the sea. Each room contains 32 inches flat screen TVs and interactive touch phones. The restaurant is deserved to hotel clients ant to their guests.
Malibu people don’t want their beloved city to become like Newport Beach: a small town in Orange County where a lot of rich people live and that is widely known for its numerous villas, each similar to the others, and for its shopping centres wide like airports. And they are working to conserve at least a part of Malibu old fashioned appeal.

Italy. The Port of Genoa (Antico porto)

We have news of the activity of the port of Genoa already from the 5th century B.C. The port developed in the following centuries becoming a focal trade point for the entire Mediterranean area. During the 4th century A.D., Genoa was the leading port of the Mediterranean Sea. This leadership was still intact during the era of the crusades and in the 16th century, the Genoese Century, according to Fernand Braudel opinion. In the Old Port of Genoa we find today the famous Aquarium built by Renzo Piano for the international Expo of 1992. The year 1992 commemorates also the 500th anniversary of discovery of America. Modern and old buildings now co-exist thanks to a an intense activity of salvaging and refurbishing of the historic port and of the old town, which stands close by.

Jewish Historical Museum in Amsterdam

museum

There is a rich Jewish tradition in Amsterdam, well represented by many places worth a visit such as Anne Frank House. But, if you are looking for a single location that can give you a sense of the whole Jew’s history in Amsterdam, you must visit the Jewish Historical Museum. The museum itself is located in one of the historical four Ashkenazi synagogues located in the center of the old Jewish quarter. The synagogue alone, built in the late 17th century, have been fully restored to their condition before the World War II. The museum contains a permanent exhibit that details the role of Jewish religion and traditions in Amsterdam, as well as life stories dealing with the persecution of Jews during the Second World War. There are also a variable number of temporary exhibits, which cover all areas of Jewish religion and culture, including the Jewish arts, writing and even about food. There is also a wide range of exhibits that are specifically tailored for children and that will help them to better understand the relevance and impact of Judaism in Amsterdam.
Location: Jonas Daniel Meijerplein 2-4, Amsterdam

Snowboarding in Dubai

Are you looking forward to combine holiday and luxury, business and shopping, imagination and creativity, extravagance and elegance? If it is so, your destination is without any doubt Dubai: choose a 5 stars hotel (and the rate, especially if you book in advance, will not be prohibitive). This astonishing town, born in the middle of the desert, can offer practically everything, in Dubai everything is new or better under construction. In Dubai you will find the highest skyscraper in the world with its 800 metres (Burj Dubai), in the near future will see the light a floating residential area called “The World” built in the middle of the sea, and Malls or business centres where you can buy anything at special reduced prices, boutiques and amusement places, you can even go snowboarding! ( www.skidubai.com )Here are some interesting sites: 

• www.malloftheemirates.com
• www.thedubai-mall.com
• www.mydsf.com

The “Manhattan of the Desert” has even more to offer you: from the sea and the infinite beaches to the sunset in the desert. And soon low cost flights, as per a project of the Group Emirates.

Discover London. Belgravia and Belgrave square

Discover London, Belgravia and Belgrave square. Build in the mid-1800’s, the houses surounding thee Belgrave square are just imposing mansions with porticoes and columns meant to the residence for courters, being so close to Buckingham palace. Laid out by the architect/builder Thomas Cubitt, it derives its name from the Duke of Westminster, whose subsidiary title was that of Viscount Belgrave. Until “nd World War here lived leading members of the British aristocracy and has been a favourite location for embassies since the 19th century. The present Duke of Westminster remains the owner o the Belgrave square. To be mentioned the Belgravia gallery with works by renown artists, from paintings to litographs, sculptures and fine art photography.

Travel to Morocco: Sunset at Volubilis

A visit to Volubilis, the archaeological site located near Meknes, between Fez and Rabat, can’t be missed during a journey to Morocco. Volubilis, an important outpost of the Roman empire in the 3rd century B.C. is an exceptionally well preserved example of Roman Africa, which stretched out for over than 40 hectares. Volubilis is listed as Unesco’s Heritage site since 1997 and is really worth being visited, expecially at sunset, when the shadows of the ruins give to this site a truly fascinating atmosphere. In a place where Latin language had been surviving for centuries, you could admire the “Victory Arch” built in 217 to honour the Emperor Caracalla, the remarkable mosaics of Ephebe’s house and the Capitol towering over an arid plain. In few words: Rome in Africa!