The Prague Castle
The Cathedral in its current form dates back November 21, 1344. Along with religious ceremonies, the coronations of Czech kings and queens also took place within the cathedral.
The Prague astronomical clock, also known as the Prague Orloj, is a remarkable feat of medieval engineering and is widely considered one of the most unique clocks in the world. The clock was first installed in 1410, making it the third-oldest astronomical clock in the world and the oldest one still in operation. Its intricate design and impressive features continue to captivate visitors to Prague, and it is one of the city's most popular landmarks.
One of the most unique features of the clock is the "Walk of the Apostles" animation, which occurs every hour. This animation consists of twelve apostles that appear in two windows above the clock face, each moving and nodding their heads in turn. This feature is unique to the Prague astronomical clock, and it is one of the reasons why the clock is such a popular tourist attraction. Visitors to the clock can witness this animation, along with the other intricate workings of the clock, and gain a sense of the incredible engineering and scientific knowledge of its creators.
Another impressive feature of the clock is the astronomical dial, which displays a range of astronomical information including the position of the sun and the moon, the phases of the moon, and the time of sunrise and sunset. The clock also displays the equinoxes and solstices, as well as the signs of the zodiac. This level of detail is unusual for a clock of its age, and it demonstrates the incredible engineering and scientific knowledge of the clock's creators.
There are some incredibly interesting things hidden below ground in Brno, the second largest city in the Czech Republic. Below the Capuchin Monastery lies a handful of mummies, dating back to the 17th century. These mummies are the bodies of Capuchin friars (monks). Their mummification may have been a happy accident, with the composition of the dirt in this room and the naturally dry air currents in the crypt allowed these bodies to become mummified, rather than decompose over the centuries.
Many copies of "Mona Lisa" were painted years after the fact, but this copy is different. Evidence shows it was painted at the same time and in the same studio as the original masterpiece, probably by one of Leonardo's assistants or pupils.
The painting shows the same woman and the same landscape, but depicts the woman in a more youthful and vibrant fashion, because the original masterpiece has been dulled by layers of cracked varnish. This copy is now one of the most important sources of information for working procedures in Leonardo's studios.
It is on view in the Prado Museum in Madrid, Spain, with little fanfare or protection, unlike the original.
On September 11, 2014 the Catalonian population of Spain gathered in Barcelona to call for independence. Estimates of the attendance varied: the government office put it at about 500,000, but Barcelona's Municipal Police put it at 1.8 million. An independent statistical analysis by the Autonomous University of Barcelona calculated that 900,000 people attended.
The organizers, ANC, said it was one of the biggest peaceful mobilizations in European history.
The Bavarian festival, held annually in Munich, is one of the largest in the world. In 2017, 7.5 million liters of beer was consumed by 6.2 million visitors from approximately 75 countries over 18 days. But what are these people celebrating, and how did it begin?
Oktoberfest is actually the celebration of a wedding, one between Crown Prince Ludwig and Princess Therese, on October 12, 1810. This couple would rise to King and Queen of Bavaria in 1825.
To celebrate their wedding, they invited the citizens of Munich to open fields on the outskirts of the city for festivities and horse races. They named these fields "Theresienwiese" (Theresa's Meadow) in honor of the princess, which it is still called today.
The Sendlinger Hill was used as a grandstand for 40,000 race spectators. The tastings of treats, wine, and beer took place in the stands on the hill. Before the race started, a performance was held in honor of the newlyweds and the royal family in the form of a train of 16 pairs of children dressed in costumes from the then nine Bavarian townships and other regions. This was followed by the a race with 30 horses and concluded with the singing of a student choir.
This could have just been a one time event in honor of the wedding. If it was, there would be no Oktoberfest today. However, a year later, in 1811, a decision was made to repeat the horse races and celebrations. This decision is what launched what is now the annual Oktoberfest tradition.
Today, massive wooden tents are built specifically for Oktoberfest. These are not ordinary tents, the largest one fits nearly 9,000 people inside!
Something you will see everywhere is the "brezel" (pretzel), a classic Oktoberfest snack. "Brotfrauen" (bread ladies) carry super-sized pretzels in huge baskets from table to table for sale to festival-goers.
The festival runs for 16 to 18 days, from mid to late September and ends on the first weekend of October.
The design of the Eiffel Tower was the product of Maurice Koechlin and Émile Nouguier, two senior engineers working for the Compagnie des Établissements Eiffel, after discussion about a suitable centerpiece for the proposed 1889 Exposition Universelle, a world's fair to celebrate the centennial of the French Revolution. Eiffel openly acknowledged that inspiration for a tower came from the Latting Observatory built in New York City in 1853.
The proposed tower had been a subject of controversy, drawing criticism from those who did not believe it was feasible and those who objected on artistic grounds. These objections were an expression of a long-standing debate in France about the relationship between architecture and engineering.
A petition called "Artists against the Eiffel Tower" was sent to the Minister of Works and Commissioner for the Exposition, Charles Alphand, and it was published by Le Temps on February 14, 1887:
We, writers, painters, sculptors, architects and passionate devotees of the hitherto untouched beauty of Paris, protest with all our strength, with all our indignation in the name of slighted French taste, against the erection … of this useless and monstrous Eiffel Tower … To bring our arguments home, imagine for a moment a giddy, ridiculous tower dominating Paris like a gigantic black smokestack, crushing under its barbaric bulk Notre Dame, the Tour Saint-Jacques, the Louvre, the Dome of les Invalides, the Arc de Triomphe, all of our humiliated monuments will disappear in this ghastly dream. And for twenty years … we shall see stretching like a blot of ink the hateful shadow of the hateful column of bolted sheet metal.
During its construction, the Eiffel Tower surpassed the Washington Monument to become the tallest man-made structure in the world, a title it held for 41 years until the Chrysler Building in New York City was finished in 1930. Due to the addition of a broadcasting aerial at the top of the tower in 1957, it is now taller than the Chrysler Building by 5.2 meters (17 ft). The Eiffel Tower is the most-visited paid monument in the world; 6.91 million people ascended it in 2015.
This is its underbelly.
Highland Cattle are a hardy breed of cattle from Scotland with long horns and long wavy coats. They are bred to withstand the conditions in the Scottish Highlands. Their long hair gives the breed its ability to survive through the winter. They are raised primarily for their meat, regarded as of the highest quality with lower cholesterol than other varieties of beef.
The Highland cattle registry, or the "herd book", was established in 1885. This is the oldest herd book in the world, which makes them the oldest registered cattle in the world. Although a group of cattle is generally called a herd, a group of Highland cattle is known as a "fold". This is because in winter, the cattle were kept in open shelters made of stone called folds to protect them from the weather at night.
They have since been exported around the world, and can be found in such places as the dunes of north Holland. They are important to the area as they help prevent the dunes from becoming overgrown.
Strangely, right-wing extremists of the PVV political party made the presence of this breed of cattle a political issue, calling them "illegal immigrants" in the run up to the 2012 elections. They have suggested sending the cattle back home to Scotland because the region needs its "own nature". Critics were quick to point out the absurdity of the suggestion. Conservationists noted that Highland cattle make a "good substitute" for the original Dutch wild cattle, which have died out.
Others on social media mocked the idea, stating: "Next: migrating birds. They will be forced to stay south during the spring and summer. Soon, the PVV will ask migrating birds coming from Africa if they have a transit visa to fly over the Netherlands." Another stated: "What the PVV appears to forget is that bringing back 'our own nature' would mean breaching the dykes and flooding the polders to achieve the natural state of a submerged land. This is quite typical of these idiots."
Hamburg is a transport hub, being the 2nd largest port in Europe, and is an affluent city in Europe. It has become a media and industrial centre, with plants and facilities belonging to Airbus, Blohm + Voss and Aurubis. Hamburg has been an important financial centre for centuries, and is the seat of the world's second oldest bank, Berenberg Bank. With the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea and many consular and diplomatic missions, the city is also an important place of politics and international law, reflecting its long tradition as a hub for global trade and business.
The many streams, rivers and canals are crossed by some 2,500 bridges, more than London, Amsterdam and Venice put together. Hamburg has more bridges inside its city limits than any other city in the world and more canals than Amsterdam and Venice combined.
