Perched on a limestone spur high above the Júcar and Huécar rivers, it’s most famous for its well-preserved “casas colgadas,” or hanging houses. Cantilevered over the Huécar gorge, they seemingly cling to the cliffs’ edges.
Category Archives: Travel
Historic Tours: Belton House In Lincolnshire, UK
A filming location for Queen Charlotte: a Bridgerton Story, this 17th-century home has been used as a set for many popular TV series and movies. Belton can be seen in the 1995 production of Pride and Prejudice starring Colin Firth and, most recently, has featured as King George III’s palace in the Bridgerton universe.
Along with a tour of some familiar scenes from the silver screen, you’ll take a closer look at a jewel in the furniture collection – a one-of-a-kind lapis lazuli cabinet. A deep blue gemstone, lapis lazuli has been used as decoration for centuries – perhaps most notably in the funerary mask of Tutankhamun. For a cabinet to be almost entirely covered in the material makes it an extremely rare object.
Travel Tour: The Rivers And Rainforests Of Laos
Vientiane, the capital, is the site of the That Luang monument, where a reliquary reportedly houses the Buddha’s breastbone, plus the Patuxai war memorial and Talat Sao (Morning Market), a complex jammed with food, clothes and craft stalls.
Travel: A Tour Of Sintra In Southwestern Portugal
Video timeline: 00:00 – Intro Sintra and Map 00:47 – Rua Dr. Alfredo da Costa 03:01 – Volta do Duche 13:00 – Escadinhas do Teixeira 13:55 – Beco da Judiaria 16:22 – Rua Padarias 17:32 – Largo Dr. Gregório de Almeida 19:25 – Largo Rainha Dona Amélia 20:24 – Sintra National Palace 31:01 – Rua Padarias 33:47 – Rua Ferraria 35:24 – Miradouro da Ferraria 36:25 – Rua Ferraria 37:13 – Rua Mal. Saldanha 37:55 – Rua Costa do Castelo 38:52 – Rua Ferraria 39:54 – Escadinhas Félix Nunes 40:46 – Praça da República 41:35 – Rua Biquinha 43:52 – Escadinhas do Briamante 44:26 – Rua Gil Vicente 45:29 – Rua Consiglieri Pedroso 51:11 – Avenida Almeida Garrett
The Moorish- and Manueline-style Sintra National Palace is distinguished by dramatic twin chimneys and elaborate tilework. The hilltop 19th-century Pena National Palace is known for a whimsical design and sweeping views.
Travel: Raven’s Nest In Transylvania, Romania
Travel: Walking Tour Of Camogli In Liguria, Italy
Video timeline: 0:00 Drone intro and Map 1:27 Camogli Beach 5:01 Seaside promenade 6:45 Pastel Colored Houses 18:59 Il Giorgio 26:41 Piazza Cristoforo Colombo 27:12 Marina 30:53 Basilica di Santa Maria Assunta 33:05 Castle della Dragonara 39:27 Via al Molo 58:16 Porticciolo di Camogli 1:08:09 Via Piero Schiaffino 1:13:01 Piazza Cristoforo Colombo 1:19:24 Seaside promenade
Travel: Tour Of The Island Of Zakynthos In Greece
Video timeline: 0:00 Intro 0:52 Boat trip to Zakynthos’ north coast 3:00 Blue Caves 10:41 Shipwreck Beach (Navagio Beach) 14:56 Swimming in the sea 19:32 Navagio Beach viewpoint 23:17 Fjords of Zakynthos’ west coast 27:54 Tsilivi Beach 28:53 Seacret Beach Club 32:53 Boat trip to Zakynthos’ south coast 34:43 Turtle island & turtle spotting 40:13 Kalonisi islet 43:50 Sunset
Arts/History: Smithsonian Magazine – Sep/Oct 2023
Smithsonian Magazine (September/October Issue) – Journey to Spain’s last Moorish Kingdom – From the magical Alhambra to desert backcountry and hidden coastal glories…welcome to Andalusia; Saving the world’s most coveted Chocolate; Mead – it’s not just for Vikings, and more…
Famed 5,300-Year-Old Alps Iceman Was a Balding Middle-Aged Man With Dark Skin and Eyes
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Genetic analysis shows that Ötzi was descended from farmers who migrated from an area that is now part of Turkey
Ötzi, the 5,300-year-old mummy found murdered high in the Alps with an arrow in his back, is a prehistoric celebrity who attracts 300,000 visitors a year to his custom cooling chamber in the South Tyrol Museum of Archaeology in Bolzano, Italy. Years of studies have revealed much about the Iceman, from his last meal—dried ibex and deer meat with einkorn wheat—to the distant Tuscan origins of his copper ax. But while the wizened mummy is extraordinarily well preserved for its age, it gives little impression of how Ötzi would have appeared in life. Now, a detailed genetic study has revealed much more about what the Iceman looked like—and traces the Copper Age corpse’s ancestral lineage back to Anatolia, an area that is now the Asian portion of Turkey.
Scientists have newly sequenced Ötzi’s genome a decade after an earlier effort, using modern techniques and comparative data to produce a much higher-quality result than ever before. The study published Wednesday in Cell Genomics reveals that Ötzi had dark eyes and skin pigmentation darker than that commonly seen among modern inhabitants of Greece or Sicily, though he’s previously been depicted with lighter skin more akin to that of Europeans living in the Alps today. And contrary to most artists’ interpretations, it also appears that he suffered from an age-old affliction still troublesome today—he was going bald.
Venice Palazzo Tour: Ca’ Dario On The Grand Canal
In the heart of Venice, a stone’s throw from the Peggy Guggenheim Collection and the Basilica of Santa Maria della Salute, Ca’ Dario is one of the most famous historic buildings overlooking the Grand Canal.
A masterful example of the Venetian Gothic style mixed with Renaissance elements, the palace is an imposing building of 1,000 sqm on five floors embellished with original decorations and unique elements. The hidden gem of the palace is the 170-sqm private garden at the back of the building.
THIS 500-YEAR-OLD VENETIAN GOTHIC PALACE, also known as Ca’ Dario, has claimed a host of unlucky victims, including the rich and famous. It’ said that the people who owned the building or stayed there for more than 20 days died, committed murder, or became bankrupt. Even local fisherman don’t dare cast their ropes by the cursed palazzo, which has been dubbed “the house that kills.”
The house was built in 1479 for aristocrat Giovanni Dario. His daughter Marietta and her husband Vincenzo later inherited the house. Vincenzo was stabbed to death, and Marietta died by suicide in the Grand Canal not long after. Shortly after these tragedies, their son Vincenzo Jr. was killed in Crete by assassins.
Design: Te Pae North Piha Surf Tower, New Zealand
The brief was for a robust, low-maintenance building that would withstand the severe North Piha coastal environment. It needed to provide accommodation for four lifeguards with excellent visibility along the beach – a building that was functional and responded to its context.
Piha is a part of the rohe (territory) of Te Kawerau ā Maki (the indigenous Māori tribe) who gifted the name Te Pae, meaning ‘to perch’ – a place to sit, look, and observe. It was a privilege to be able to incorporate this narrative into the concept for the tower.
The form offers a softness and quiet presence in this powerful coastal location. The site is remote, and so prefabricated concrete sections were factory-made and assembled on site. This minimised dune and planting disturbance on this fragile beach. North Piha is unusual in that the sand is black. The black oxidised concrete references this and the curved form reflects the undulating dunes that the building sits amongst. The tower is modest in scale and recessive, respecting its setting. At the same time, as a beacon for visitors to the beach, it requires easy recognition, and the distinctive form sits in contrast to the beautiful, rugged backdrop. This is a piece of coastal sculpture with a nod to traditional maritime observation structures around the New Zealand coast.
The tower is sustainable, utilising operable windows for ventilation, with high levels of insulation, sun protection, thermal mass, and natural light. It provides shelter and protection for the lifeguards. The placement of the windows was carefully determined with the club to provide optimum beach surveillance and a connection back to the clubhouse.
The new tower is a vital addition to safety at North Piha. It delivers a facility that supports the extraordinary volunteers who run it and meets the needs of its community now and into the future.
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