Tag Archives: Tours

Architecture: Historical Tour Of Georgetown D.C.

Today Architectural Digest takes you to Washington, D.C. for a walking tour of Georgetown with architect Nicholas Potts, highlighting historical architectural details hidden in plain sight. Georgetown’s founding predates that of Washington, D.C. and it wasn’t incorporated into the nation’s capital until the 19th century. Nick demonstrates how vestiges of Georgetown’s origins remain to this day, explaining how the neighborhood has retained its distinctive feel.

Check out Nicholas Potts here: Website: https://nicholasgpotts.com/

Design: Hidden Garden House, Sydney, Australia

Imbued with a sense of tranquillity, Hidden Garden House is a minimalist residence with a restrained materiality. Designed by TRIAS in collaboration with the clients, the home emerges as a peaceful ode to simplicity.

Video timeline: 00:00 – The Local Project’s Print Publication 00:15 – Introduction to Hidden Garden House 00:40 – The Surrounding Neighbourhood 01:01 – A Walkthrough of the House 01:43 – Views from the Upper Level 01:54 – The Hidden Garden 02:13 – The Creative Clients 02:35 – Hand Made House Features from the Client 03:09 – Warmth Through Material Selections 04:17 – Taking Pride in the Project 05:09 – The Architects Favourite Features 05:38 – Subscribe to The Local Project’s Print Publication

Located in the Sydney suburb of Darlinghurst, Hidden Garden House celebrates small living on the fringe of the CBD. A house tour of the property elucidates its floor plan. Entering the home, the living room leads to an elevated dining room, which in turn flows to the kitchen space. The kitchen wraps around a courtyard garden and upstairs, the bedroom and bathroom are separated by blocks of joinery. As one of the occupants of Hidden Garden House is a ceramicist, their influence is apparent throughout the home. Terracotta floor tiles line the kitchen whilst white tiles in the lightwell bounce sunlight into the home. Brass hardware and elegant furniture also testify to the quality of the client’s work. TRIAS uses natural materials to establish a sense of warmth in Hidden Garden House. Bagged brickwork proposes a feeling of tactility, while timber floors and joinery visually soften the interior. Smaller details such as pendant lights and brass finishes speak endearingly to the idea of careful consideration. Refined and minimal, Hidden Garden House stands as a timeless residence; a ceramicist’s own home. Working closely with the clients and embracing their unique contributions, TRIAS translates a joint vision into an architectural success.

Home Tours: A Scottish Highlands Retreat (Video)

Interior designer Jill Macnair shows us around her home in the Scottish Highlands, a place of retreat that brings her a sense of peace, place and connection to the natural world.

“If there were a window into my soul, I think the view would be a rain-soaked Scottish landscape. Not, I hope, because I have a relentlessly bleak nature. My dad plotted family holidays all over the small but majestic country I grew up in, and while I didn’t greatly appreciate his efforts at the time – the walks were a bit too long, the cycles often too uphill – the colours and scenes etched into my memory from those trips are the ones that still restore me today. They form the palette that now underpins the design of my holiday home on Loch Tay, Perthshire.

Interior designer Jill Macnair’s Scottish home from the cover of ELLE Decoration Country Vol.16

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Cultural Tours: Inside The City Of Gdańsk In Poland

DW Reporter Lukas Stege explores the Polish city of Gdańsk, where the Eastern Bloc began its decline! Communism‘s deterioration picked up pace when the port workers at Lenin Shipyard went on strike in 1980 and the independent union Solidarity was founded.

00:00 Intro 00:15 The Old City of Gdańsk 01:04 A Port Ride in the Pirate Ship Ferry 01:44 The Old Shipyard and the Solidarność or Solidarity Movement 06:57 Lost Place and Free Space for Artists, Galleries and Bars 07:58 Gallery Mleczny Piotr 08:36 100cnia

Join Lukas on his journey through Europe’s recent history, which was heavily influenced by these events in Gdańsk. And he also brings us to a very special lost place in this port city!

CREDITS Report: Lukas Stege, Anne Termeche Camera: Holm Weber Editing: Klaus Hellmich

Travel Guides: Top Things To Do In Oslo, Norway (DW)

There’s so much to discover in Oslo: beaches, bars and clubs, restaurants and culture in abundance. But how to choose? Here are three unmissable attractions in the Norwegian capital.

Oslo, the capital of Norway, sits on the country’s southern coast at the head of the Oslofjord. It’s known for its green spaces and museums. Many of these are on the Bygdøy Peninsula, including the waterside Norwegian Maritime Museum and the Viking Ship Museum, with Viking ships from the 9th century. The Holmenkollbakken is a ski-jumping hill with panoramic views of the fjord. It also has a ski museum. 

Beach Resort Tours: 24 Hours In Placencia, Belize

If you only have 24 hours in a location, it’s hard to decide how to plan the perfect trip and not feel like you’ve missed any must-see locations. That’s why SI Swimsuit tasked tour guide Edward Cano in coming up with an amazing list of stops for Jasmine Sanders and Leyna Bloom during their time in Belize.

Placencia is a beach resort on the Caribbean coast of Belize. It’s at the southern tip of the Placencia Peninsula, known for its palm-lined beaches. Between the peninsula and the mainland, Placencia Lagoon is home to manatees and saltwater crocodiles. Offshore, there are dive sites on the coral Belize Barrier Reef. To the north, the Garífuna community of Seine Bight is a hub for traditional drumming and dance.

Belize City is a port city in the Central American country of Belize. It’s divided into north and south sides by Haulover Creek, which opens into the Caribbean Sea. The manually operated 1920s Swing Bridge, a busy crossing point, links the two. On the north side, the Museum of Belize traces the country’s history, with exhibits including Mayan artifacts. The Image Factory gallery shows local contemporary art.

French River Cruises: Southern Burgundy

Hotel barge L’Impressionniste glides gently through the picturesque Ouche Valley in Southern Burgundy through locks with their charming lock houses. You will see medieval villages perched on hilltops and have the opportunity to discover a region famed for its history and viticulture, with visits to such places as Beaune, the regions ‘wine capital’, and the elegant city of Dijon.

What is hotel barging? Despite the growing popularity of cruising, especially on large river vessels, hotel barging is still a little known niche concept. Most hotel barges started life as cargo vessels but have since been painstakingly converted to offer luxury boutique accommodation for small groups of up to 20 passengers. This is cruising, but in a very different style to ships plying the big rivers or oceans.

The pace is slow, with a 6 day cruise covering maybe just 50 miles along a rural canal. Passengers can walk or bike the towpaths as their floating hotel glides gently along. Guests enjoy an intimate atmosphere, high levels of personal service and immersion into the culture, history and gastronomy of regions of Europe such as Burgundy, the Midi, or the Italian Veneto. Every day there is an excursion, perhaps to a chateau, a vineyard for a wine tasting, or some other ‘off the beaten track’ location.

About half of European Waterways’ bookings are for whole boat charters, ideal for families. Otherwise, clients book a cabin to join other like-minded people. A ‘slow boat’ European Waterways barge cruise offers the ultimate in experiential travel. A truly unique experience! European Waterways offer luxury hotel barge cruises on the beautiful canals and rivers of Europe, such as through Burgundy, the Midi, Alsace, the Po Valley, Holland and the Scottish Highlands.

The exclusive collection of hotel barges accommodate up to 20 passengers who may charter a whole barge with family or friends, or join a small group of like-minded travellers on an individual cabin basis. Each barge is fully crewed with a Captain, chef, hostesses, deck-hand and tour guide. The 6-night cruises include gourmet meals, fine wines, open bar, excursions and the use of facilities such as bicycles and spa pools.

Find out more: http://www.europeanwaterways.com/

Architecture Tour: Light Scoop House In Australia

Situated on a site measuring only 6 metres wide, Light Scoop House required a compelling architectural response. As is necessary when an architect designs a narrow home, Molecule Studio enables function in a compact space, crafting a serene residence well-suited to the lifestyle of the client. Understandably, when an architect designs a narrow home, access to natural sunlight is given high priority.

00:00 – The Local Project Print Publication 00:18 – Introduction to a Narrow Home That is Only 6 Meters Wide 00:47 – The Clients Original Goal 01:06 – The Architects Pre-Design Process 01:25 – Zen Vibes and Interconnected Design 02:05 – Behind the Narrowness of The Home 02:39 – Landscape Courtyards and Garden Connection 03:06 – Architectural Elements within The Home 03:37 – Central Materials and Their Links to Light 04:46 – Achievements of The Original Brief 05:54 – Subscribe to The Local Project Print Publication

Located in the bay-side suburb of Brighton, Light Scoop House is named in reference to its tapered-edge pavilion roofs which pull natural light into the home and lift the gaze upwards. If an architect designs a narrow home without considering the lifestyle of the occupant, the design will not succeed. Molecule Studio thoroughly examines the personal likes, dislikes and daily habits of the client, producing a tranquil home that captures sunlight across its textural surfaces. Molecule Studio punctuates the spatial plan of Light Scoop House with landscaped courtyards. In doing so, the architect designs a narrow home that fosters a distinct feeling of retreat, effortlessly connecting the occupant to nature. Light Scoop House demonstrates that when an architect designs a narrow home, the outcome can exceed expectations. Using a limited materiality, Molecule Studio creates a sense of calm and careful construction that extends far beyond the demands of the brief. 00:00 – The Local Project Print Publication 00:18 – Introduction to a Narrow Home That is Only 6 Meters Wide 00:47 – The Clients Original Goal 01:06 – The Architects Pre-Design Process 01:25 – Zen Vibes and Interconnected Design 02:05 – Behind the Narrowness of The Home 02:39 – Landscape Courtyards and Garden Connection 03:06 – Architectural Elements within The Home 03:37 – Central Materials and Their Links to Light 04:46 – Achievements of The Original Brief 05:54 – Subscribe to The Local Project Print Publication

Home Renovations: May House, Malvern, Australia

When an architect designs a house with consideration and care, dwellings such as May House emerge. Taking a playful approach to colour and materiality, Neil Architecture reimagines a 1980s home as a relaxed, modern family residence.

Video timeline: 00:00 – The Local Project’s Print Publication 00:10 – Introduction to the House 00:45 – Complementary Design 01:01 – Exterior Renovations 02:03 – 1980s Materiality 03:12 – Landscape Architecture 04:09 – A House Made for Entertaining 04:42 – Timeliness Rejuvenation 05:17 – Subscribe to The Local Project’s Print Publication

When an architect designs a house, the design brief can often stipulate a complete renovation. However, Neil Architecture recognised the value of the original 1980s construction – settled into the leafy suburb of Malvern – and decided instead to complement the home with architectural additions.

To maintain the strong and simple form of the original structure, Neil Architecture covers the pre-existing truss with a perforated screen. Off-form concrete is used to create the carport, whilst a roughcast concrete render is applied to the fence – in doing so, the architect designs a house that interacts with the local built environment. As an architect designs a house, the intent can be expressed through the finer details of the scheme.

In May House, rusty red and green tones appear in the material palette, paying homage to the colours present in 1980s interior design. May House sees a 1980s residence both celebrated and reimagined, embraced and rejuvenated. Managing the external architecture and interior detail, the architect designs a house that is imbued with a sense of warmth and continuity; a house for the future that is inspired by the past.