Big Ben is the nickname for the Great Bell of the striking clock at the northeast end of the Palace of Westminster. The nickname is frequently extended to refer also to the clock and to the entire clock tower.
In 2012, the official name of the tower was changed to “Elizabeth Tower” to commemorate the Queen’s Diamond (60th year as queen) Jubilee.
7 million liters of beer are drunk on average during Munich’s Oktoberfest . A tough job for the waiters who are serving the tables in the festival tents. Especially, if you’re an absolute beginner like Euromaxx reporter Brant Dennis. His challenge: to work as a server for one day, carrying 10 one-liter-mugs of beer at a time like the pros. Will he make it?
Like a medieval duel, but on the water: Contestants use lances to try to knock each other out of their boats. Since 1666, water-jousting events have been held yearly in the port city of Sète, southern France.
After a two-year break on account of the coronavirus pandemic, the traditional fisherman’s jousting event has returned. It’s considered the most important event of its kind – the the sport’s world championships. Each year, thousands of spectators and fans flock to the city to take part in the spectacle. The competition rules haven’t changed since 1666!
The legendary revue theater Moulin Rouge is one of Paris’s big attractions and the workplace of dancer Nora Mogalle. She has been dancing the Cancan here for 19 years. Behind the scenes of the famous Moulin Rouge we get to know the dancer and doctor, and catch a glimpse of the spectacular shows.
Moulin Rouge is a cabaret in Paris, France. The original house, which burned down in 1915, was co-founded in 1889 by Charles Zidler and Joseph Oller, who also owned the Paris Olympia.
The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings – If you’ve read the British author J.R.R. Tolkien’s books before, or seen the movies, you’ll be familiar with the fantasy worlds he created. But where did the inspiration for these creations come from? To this day, this question is still widely debated. British author and Tolkien expert John Garth has embarked on a journey to find out.
The tradition of horseback fishing for fish and shrimp goes back to the 16th century. Large Belgian Draft horses trawl across the beach with fishing nets attached to their saddles. In Oostduinkerke, at the Belgian coast, this 500-year-old shrimping tradition has remained unchanged, except in 2015, when a small but significant change occurred: for the first time ever, 2 women joined the ranks of what was long considered a “man’s job”. We met up with the women who brave the waves on Belgians weighing up to 1 ton every day.
French billionaire François Pinault is not only one of the richest men in the world, he’s also an art collector of international renown. Now, he’s opening a museum for contemporary art in Paris. The new palace of art is located inside the former Bourse de Commerce, which has been redesigned by star architect Tadao Andō.
Cairde is a dance group that exemplifies Irish dance. As early as several thousand years ago the druids – high priests of the Celts – were said to have performed ritual group dances accompanied with music. This is possibly the root of the folk dances that later developed in Ireland to become part of the island’s cultural heritage. However, Cairde take a less traditional approach to Irish dance, aiming to give it a fresh image. These young men from Ireland have already received millions of clicks on their TikTok dance videos.
Anyone who has ever been to Portugal will probably know them: the small, mostly blue square ceramic tiles, the so-called ‘azulejos’. Especially in the capital of Lisbon they decorate many houses. Even today, the decorative tiles are still made by hand. The word azulejos does not come from the Portuguese word “azul” for blue – as one might think. It comes from Arabic and means something like “polished little stone”.
In the Italian city of Florence, high-quality colored paper and gift wrap have a long tradition. In fact, some of it is still made by hand. These papers are famous for their delightful patterns, shiny colors, and their Italian Renaissance-era motifs. We went to visit paper manufacturers in Florence to find out more about this age-old tradition!
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