Category Archives: Tours

Architecture, Home Design, Homes, Tours, Videos

New Zealand Design Tour: ‘The Folly’ Island Cabin

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The Local Project (March 19, 2024) – The philosophical intent of The Folly by Chesire Architects is to provide a gentle cabin retreat for its owners. As such, the architect is concerned about employing a built interior quality of calm and repose to the cabin. Positioned on a clifftop in Takapuna, New Zealand,

Video timeline: 00:00 – Introduction to The Secluded Cabin 00:44 – A 25-year Long Process 01:35 – Incorporating Considered Luxury 02:22 – The Cabin Floor Plan 03:17 – A Warm Material Palette 04:30 – The Collaborative Process 05:11 – Inspired by Personal Memories

The Folly is an end piece of a project that started near thirty years prior and is a single house with steps down the clifftop. To complement the original luxurious home, the architect built The Folly on the far northern edge of the landscape to embrace the sun and views. With each Chesire Architects projects there is an element of managed revelation, so that when one arrives there is hint of something before the reveal is slowly rolled out. Designed to look like a modern yet rusted shed, The Folly can be seen across the landscape from the main home, yet it isn’t until approach that its charm is revealed.

Following the house tour through the entry, there is a realisation that there is a level of consideration and luxury provided through the choice of materials, decor and interior design. The cabin appears to look casual and informal yet, through its meticulously planned interior design and architecture, a certain level of luxurious indulgence is felt. The floor plan of the cabin is kept quite simple as the architect has built it to serve two functions. One half is the garden shed and the other is the retreat and guesthouse with kitchen. The inside of the home is rectangular in shape and everything, such as the kitchen, lounge space and two-way fireplace, is visible upon entrance. Outside is an open-air terrace where one can sit and look out to the ocean.

Cities, Tourism, Tours, Travel, Videos

Travel Guides: A One-Day Tour Of Athens, Greece

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DW Travel (March 17, 2024): Delicious food, centuries of history and insider tips: our reporter Sarah Hucal tells you how to see the best of Athens, in just one day.

Video timeline: 00:00 Intro 00:36 Filopappou Hill, Acropolis views 01:13 Monastiraki Square 01:44 Historic neighbourhood of Plaka 02:22 Hadrian’s Library and the Roman Agora 02:42 How to save money and visit the Archaeological sites 03:02 Finding local souvenirs at the Kypseli farmers’ market 04:35 Street band Sourloulou 05:37 The Acropolis Museum and the Acropolis 07:09 Greek Rebetiko music and dining at Skordópistē restaurant

In this video you will find tips for how to visit the main sites in the Greek capital like the Acropolis and Roman Agora. Taking you off the beaten tourist track, Sarah explores Greece’s rich musical traditions and shows us an authentic side of Athens that most tourists don’t see. Did you miss something in our video? Let us know in the comments!

Animals, Tours, Travel, Videos, Views, Wildlife

California: Elk At Point Reyes National Seashore

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CBS Sunday Morning (March 10, 2024): We leave you this Sunday Morning with majestic Tule Elk at Point Reyes National Seashore, in California. Videographer: Lance Milbrand.

Tule elk are endemic to California and the most specialized elk in North America, given that they live in open country under semi-desert conditions, whereas the species as a whole typically occupies temperate climates and utilizes heavy cover at least seasonally.

Point Reyes National Seashore is a vast expanse of protected coastline in Northern California’s Marin County. Beaches here include Wildcat Beach, with the cliffside Alamere Falls. On a rocky headland, the 1870 Point Reyes Lighthouse is a viewpoint for migrating gray whales. The Phillip Burton Wilderness features extensive trails through grassland, firs and pine forest, and up to the peak of Mount Wittenberg. 

Documentaries, Tours, Travel, Videos

Vancouver Island: Pacific Rim National Park, Canada

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TRACKS – Travel Documentaries (March 9, 2024): The west coast of Vancouver Island is full of spectacular landscapes, from barren coastlines to world famous hiking trails, its a coastal adventure destination. Accessible only by boat or plane, this rarely seen gem of nature is full of marine wildlife and coastal caves with subsea reefs.

The magnificent Pacific Rim National Park is the only national park entirely on Vancouver Island, providing protection for substantial rain forests and an amazing marine environment on the west coast of Vancouver Island. The full force of the mighty Pacific Ocean mercilessly pounds the constantly changing shores of this rugged coastline.

Architecture, Home Design, Homes, Tours, Videos

San Francisco Design: Tour Of ‘Hidden House’

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The Local Project (March 9, 2024) – Located on Telegraph Hill, a meticulously preserved locale in San Francisco, Hidden House breaks away from conventional architectural styles and emerges as a contemporary house amid the historical backdrop of the city.

Video timeline: 00:00 – Introduction to the Contemporary House 01:13 – The Three Basic Components and Zones 02:14 – The Collage of Materials 03:05 – Capturing Spontaneity and Dynamism 03:30 – The City of San Francisco 03:56 – Tying Spaces Together Through Light 05:25 – Proud Moments

To realise the project, OPA demonstrates contextual sensitivity with the facade, which features timber as well as a traditional bay window with extensive glazing, fitting for the streetscape. Furthermore, the facade is adorned with wooden panels transitioning from vertical to horizontal orientations, symbolising contemporary innovation over traditional craftmanship. The contemporary house is composed of three fundamental elements. The house tour unveils how the facade of the home serves as a disguise, concealing the inner workings of the residence along with its modern interior design and architecture.

Additionally, the unique house boasts two distinct zones, each with its own character and personality. One zone presents a vertical and abstract aesthetic, where the materiality is obscured by vibrant blue paint, while the other exudes a raw and refined charm. The initial zone aims to immerse visitors in a psychological experience, utilising colour as a bold element within the home’s interior design, despite its relatively low cost compared to other features. Transitioning to the second zone of the contemporary house, OPA has achieved a strikingly contrasting effect. In this area, materials are expressed in their raw and refined forms, all oriented horizontally.

#House#Abstract#TheLocalProject

Art, Arts & Literature, Museums, Reviews, Tours, Videos

Art Museum Exhibitions: The Harlem Renaissance & Transatlantic Modernism

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The Met (March 8, 2024): Join Dr. Denise M. Murrell, Merryl H. and James S. Tisch Curator at Large in The Met’s Director’s Office, for a virtual tour of the groundbreaking exhibition The Harlem Renaissance and Transatlantic Modernism.

Through some 160 works of painting, sculpture, photography, film, and ephemera, it will explore the comprehensive and far-reaching ways in which Black artists portrayed everyday modern life in the new Black cities that took shape in the 1920s–40s in New York City’s Harlem and nationwide in the early decades of the Great Migration when millions of African Americans began to move away from the segregated rural South.

The first art museum survey of the subject in New York City since 1987, the exhibition will establish the Harlem Renaissance and its radically new development of the modern Black subject as central to the development of international modern art.

On view February 25 – July 28, 2024.

#TheMet#Art#TheMetropolitanMuseumofArt

Food, Restaurants, Tourism, Tours, Travel, Videos

Travel & Food: What And Where To Eat In Canada

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Expedia (March 7, 2024): What is Canadian food? Episode 1 of Where To goes beyond the search results to pull up a chair and find out.

From the Bay of Fundy in the east to the rugged Pacific coastline of Vancouver Island in the west, Canada provides glorious outdoor sights. Tour the nation’s impressive scenery, sophisticated cities and peaceful countryside for a vacation you will remember forever.

In the east, the fictional home of Anne of Green Gables on Prince Edward Island will make the beloved young adult series come alive. In nearby Nova Scotia and New Brunswick, see the unusual tides of the Bay of Fundy that rise and fall up to 50 feet (16 meters) each day.

On the western coast, British Columbia has lovely harbors in Vancouver and Victoria, with whale watching, sunbathing and shoreline walks. These and other Canadian cities have eclectic neighborhoods with concentrations of artists and ethnic centers, including interesting Chinatowns.

Spread across the center of the country, Montreal, Ottawa, Toronto, Calgary and Edmonton are among the nation’s largest metropolitan areas. All have modern city centers with wonderful restaurants, shopping, museums and galleries. In addition, each has its unique personality, from old French customs to major league baseball to cowboy rodeos.

Canada’s mountainous regions offer superb opportunities for summer hiking and sightseeing and winter skiing. Visit Revelstoke and Whistler in British Columbia and Banff and Lake Louise in Alberta for some of the best Rocky Mountain slopes and views. In the east, Mont-Tremblant in Québec has excellent skiing in the Laurentian Mountains.

Head to the lakes regions in Manitoba and Saskatchewan for fishing and hunting. Travel north to Nunavut, the Northwest Territories and the Yukon to camp under the northern lights. Canada’s national and provincial parks cater to Canadian and international visitors with scenic trails and adventurous activities.

In Canada try panning for gold, taste maple syrup fresh from production or even go on a polar bear safari. Across the nation you’re likely to be greeted with a friendly welcome. Arrive anywhere and keep exploring the beautiful lands and waters of this great nation.

Architecture, Home Design, Homes, Tours, Videos

Design: ‘Invisible House’ In Joshua Tree, California

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The Local Project (March 5, 2024) – A highly minimalist, almost invisible home, The Invisible House reflects the natural beauty and art of the desert landscape. A 1,680-square-metre, three-bedroom, four-bathroom invisible home cantilevered 30 metres off the ground, Invisible House is the innovative and imaginative collaboration between film producers and owners Chris and Roberta Hanley and architect Tomas Osinski.

Video timeline: 00:00 – Introduction to the Invisible Home 01:07 – The Evolution of the Landscape 01:56 – Conceptualising the Home 02:49 – An External Illusion 03:30 – The Material Palette 04:08 – Surprising Theatrical Moments 04:42 – Proud Moments

The invisible home is located on 36 hectares of land in Joshua Tree National Park and features a mirrored exterior to reflect the ever-changing landscape and create a dialogue between object and site. “We were drawn to the desert of Joshua Tree. We would always come out here, we see it as an escape,” says Chris. “We were looking for a place with rocks … and then we just had to pull it together and do it,” says Roberta. After exploring the site, Chris and Roberta’s vision for the invisible home was quickly conceived.

As filmmakers and creatives, their intention was to create, approaching the house as an art object and a space to facilitate entertainment, creativity and contemplation. They were inspired by their interest in large-scale projects with minimalist design, a vast network of artists and a passion for architecture. Once inside the Airbnb guesthouse there are solar and thermal systems, 68-square-metre projection wall, large kitchen and a 30-metre indoor solar pool. “We drew on the idea of the pool as an ecosystem so there would be more moisture and you wouldn’t dry out here and used glass walls on both sides of the pool.” says Roberta, “it’s a living room, we put the pool in the living room.

History, Tours, Traditions, Travel, Videos

Travel: The Scottish Village Of Gurro In Italy

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Great Big Story (February 29, 2024); The Italian Alps, home to countless quintessential Italian villages…and one not-so traditional. Welcome to Gurro, the Scottish village in Italy.

Video timeline: 00:00 Intro 00:51 Meet Rosa Patritti 01:09 Folklore 01:54 Traditional Dress 02:18 Language 03:01 Music 04:00 Food

So what actually makes this village Scottish? Legend has it that the population descended from Scottish soldiers, who stumbled across the area whilst fleeing a battle 500 years ago.

But it’s not just their supposed ancestors flying the Scottish flag – the inhabitants today wear traditional tartan, grab drinks in their local Scottish bar and they even mix Scottish into their language…Ay, can you believe it! These are the Italian locals keeping this delightfully unexpected Scottish tradition alive.

#Scotland #Italy #Travel

Architecture, Home Design, Homes, Tours, Videos

Design Tour: Morris Cove House, Long Island, NY

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The Local Project (February 28, 2024) – Located on a narrow peninsula in Sag Harbor, with access to water on all sides, Morris Cove by Bates Masi + Architects is a peaceful lake home.

Video timeline: 00:00 – Introduction to the Peaceful Lake Home 00:50 – Designing for the Landscape 02:19 – Accomodating for the Weather 02:44 – The Layout of the Home 03:51 – A Character Filled Material Palette 05:00 – An Extension of the Architecture 05:28 – Favourite Aspects of the Home

The architects, Paul Masi and Aaron Weil, whose personal affinity for this part of the world and appreciation for the site’s heritage enhanced the architecture and interior design of this peaceful lake home, have crafted a family house that will, over time, ameliorate the site’s natural conditions and deepen the residents’ connection to the landscape. Bates Masi + Architects were approached by the clients – a large family “whose love of this special place makes them stewards of the site more than just owners of it,” notes Paul – to conceive a peaceful lake home. “Previously, there was a home here and, frankly, it was contributing to the erosion of the property, so one of our goals was to look at a new design that would be beneficial to the property.”

Therefore, Bates Masi + Architects decided against a renovation or refurbishment, opting instead for a family house that takes cues from Arts and Crafts style architecture and contemporary design ideals. The result is a family house that pays deference to the landscape while responding to the clients’ patterns of living and briefing requirements. Stretching along the peninsula and oriented towards the water, the architecture encompasses five pavilions beneath an overarching roof structure, including a kitchen, dining and living area as well as bedrooms and bathrooms.