Category Archives: Views

City Guides: The Food And Flavors Of Athens, Greece

Athens! What a city. The Greek capital is home to more culture and history than you can imagine so our Athens travel guide is designed to give you the tools to unlock Athens on your own terms. Athens transport, Greek food, and tips to stay safe are all included.

Athens is the capital of Greece. It was also at the heart of Ancient Greece, a powerful civilization and empire. The city is still dominated by 5th-century BC landmarks, including the Acropolis, a hilltop citadel topped with ancient buildings like the colonnaded Parthenon temple. The Acropolis Museum, along with the National Archaeological Museum, preserves sculptures, vases, jewelry and more from Ancient Greece. 

Tours: Caspers House On Paku Hill, New Zealand

A house of contrast, Caspers House is an interior designer’s own home. Crafted by Dessein Parke in collaboration with Glamuzina Architects, the residence represents the playful exploration of space and colour. The relationship between the home and its unique location may be the first indication that Caspers House is an interior designer’s own home.

Timeline: 00:00 – Introduction to an Interior Designer’s Own Home 00:51 – Orientation of the Home 01:31 – Interior Designer’s Own Home 02:04 – Unique Wall Colour 02:25 – Utilisinig Natural Light 02:45 – Split Level Design 03:31 – Features of the Home 04:21 – The Interior Designer’s Favourite Part of the Home 04:39 – The Architect’s Favourite Part of the Home 04:55 – Success of the Project

Settled on Paku Hill, an old volcano at the edge of Tairua, Caspers House relates to its setting through its boldly designed architecture. Comprised of subtle, corrugated fiberglass and sporting a triangular structure, the unconventional façade of the home references the special nature of the landscape. As an interior designer’s own home, Caspers House expresses an adventurous design approach, distinguishing it from typical New Zealand dwellings and paying homage to its unusual volcano location.

In contrast to the stark white interiors of other homes, the design of Caspers House champions a dark, muted palette that calms the senses. Testifying to its status as an interior designer’s own home, Caspars House maximises the spatial opportunities afforded by its unique architecture. Open-plan elements are contrasted with split levels, establishing the spatial flow of the home and allowing for moments of privacy within communally inhabited spaces.

The ideal match for its volcano setting, Caspers House is imbued with a sense of character. Intelligently designed and thoroughly executed, the residence exemplifies an interior designer’s own home.

Spring View: Hirosaki Park Cherry Blossoms In Japan

Hirosaki park is considered as one of the best cherry blossom viewing spots in Japan. It attracts over two million tourists across Japan. The park has about 2,600 trees of about 50 varieties and they are well-maintained by skilled gardeners.

The sakura viewing in Hirosaki Park is famous, not only because of the spectacular light-pink blanket of blossoms that arrive every spring, but for its old Somei-Yoshino cherry tree, planted in 1882.

Views: The Seychelles – Paradise Under Threat

Dream vacation or destination wedding – where better than Seychelles? The archipelago is especially popular with German tourists. But despite the island nation’s unique approach to nature conservation, this paradise is in danger.

This documentary showcases the archipelago in all its beauty, with rare animal species, white sand beaches… and the conservationists who are working hard to protect it all. Although Seychelles has just 0.13 percent of the land area of Germany, its new protected marine area is larger than the whole country. But climate change has severely impacted the archipelago, as it is often the smallest islands that are first to feel the consequences. Storms and waves damage turtle nests and corals, while further eroding the islands’ coastlines.

The country’s president Wavel Ramkalawan is also concerned. An ordained minister in the Anglican Church, Ramkalawan still preaches to this day. He tells us of the message he draws from the Bible in his fight to save the islands. We also learn about the various initiatives to rescue this tropical paradise. Coral nurseries help to revive damaged reefs. And seagrass plays a major role in combatting rising CO2 levels, as it stores more carbon than a forest of the same area.

Seychelles and Mauritius share an expanse of seagrass larger than Switzerland. The president is calling on the international community to help cover the costs of all this, because revenue from tourism isn’t enough. And many tourists care too little about it. At their wedding photoshoot, a couple from Austria explains how beautiful and easy it is to get married in paradise. But for how much longer will this paradise exist?

Himalaya Hikes: Langtang Trek In North Nepal (4K)

The Langtang trek is one of the shorter hiking routes in Nepal. It offers fantastic scenery from the jungle with banana trees and monkeys at lower altitudes to glaciers and ice peaks at higher elevations.

Langtang was a village development committee in Rasuwa District in the Bagmati Zone of northern Nepal. At the time of the 1991 Nepal census it had a population of 468 people living in 100 individual households. 

Views: Tamsui District In New Taipei City, Taiwan (4K)

Located along the riverfront in Tamsui (Danshui), Tamsui Old Street is a boardwalk-like area full of shops, carnival games, restaurants, cafés, and xiaochi snacks.

The waterfront area is a great place to watch the sunset over the Tamsui River. Vendors will generally start in the afternoon and stay open until the last MRT train at 12 midnight. Visitors who arrive early can first walk around the town area and visit other local attractions.

Tamsui is a district of New Taipei City, in north Taiwan. It sits at the confluence of the Taiwan Strait and the Tamsui River. Near the river, busy Tamsui Old Street is lined with shops, restaurants and vendors selling local specialties. Also here are the ornate Longshan Temple and centuries-old Fuyou Temple. Founded by the Spanish, the hilltop Fort San Domingo (Hongmao Castle) was revamped by the Dutch and British. 

Views: The Most Beautiful Passages & Arcades In Paris

Built for the most part in the 19th century, these arcades covered with glass roofs, created by piercing through other buildings, are a typically Parisian architectural feature. Most of them now house shopstearooms and restaurants. There are around 20 of them in Paris in the vicinity of the Grands Boulevards.

One of the oldest, the Passage des Panoramas, dates from 1799. It is home to the Théâtre des Variétés, inaugurated in 1807 and still providing entertainment. Each arcade has its own character. Passage Brady, commonly known as Little India, houses numerous Indian, Pakistan, Mauritian and Reunion shops. The Passage Verdeau houses numerous antique dealers. As for the Passage du Caire – the longest and the narrowest in the capital (more than 360 metres long) – it has a large concentration of wholesalers in ready-to-wear clothing as well as other clothes manufacturers.

Galerie Vivienne next door to the Palais-Royal is one of the most iconic covered passages. The nearby Galerie Véro-Dodat has many upmarket shops, like Christian Louboutin’s workshop-boutique. Passage du Grand-Cerf, a 12-metre-high structure made of metal and wrought iron, is one of the most spectacular arcades in Paris. 

The Galerie Vivienne is one of the covered passages of Paris, France, located in the 2nd arrondissement. It is 176 metres long and 3 metres wide. The gallery has been registered as a historical monument since 7 July 1974.