Travel to Europe. Europe Hotel and Travel information.

London is famous for having one of the best organized city systems for bikers. At all demonstrations where activists of Greenpeace and other such organizations demand for more velo-alleys, London is given as an example for a paragon-city. You can ride your bike in London and be sure that your or others' life is not risked.
The London Cycling Campaing (LCC as it is known among the young londoneers) is the biggest organized cycling campaign in the world with about 10 000 members!

If London and New York are the cities which never sleep, Paris is the city which never wakes. From the crazy dream it is in. Paris is the city of dreams. Everything is like in a fairy tale, especially in the night. During the day, you can still see some of the signs of the human civilization, which remind you of the other cities, but when night comes, there's nothing like you've seen! Place Pigalle has always been the sex centre, i'd say the eye of the sex tornado. The famous Moulin Rouge cabaret, where cancan is still performed, where the impeccable Nicole Kidman has danced. Marais is the heart of the gay scene - Paris is the place to be yourself, so if in your home town you hide what you are, forget about that in Paris! Nobody knows you in the City of Love. Everybody is a friend to everybody, at the same everybody remains anonymous.

We can call London "The New York of Europe" because it never sleeps. If you are wondering what to do in the middle of the week, it's a very good choice to go between Kings Cross and Angel (a three-minute walk). Open Decks Night is in the middle of the week, where you can see many people having good time. There are comfortable pieces of furniture, a stunning choice of cocktails and stylish drinks. Usually in the middle of week there are young and now-beginning DJs.

ELTHAM PALACE

A chef-d'ouvre of contemporary design, it shows on a large scale the splendour and vavavoom of 1930's style. Completely renovated by English Heritage, Eltham Palace displays in a marvellous way the smart and glamorous lifestyle of the people who did it - Stephen and Virginia Courtauld.

In 1933 the place was given for rent to Stephen Courtauld, who developd a modern house at the Great Hall. The building was richly decorated in a variety of styles, with biggest influence from Art Deco but without forgetting historical and classical elements.

Montparnasse is the little brother of Montmartre. Many painters, sculptors, writers, poets, musicians - all types of old-school artists roam around it. There are cheap (or cheap in inverted commas, because this is Paris after all) restaurants, and cheaper than in Montmartre lodging.
The district became popular in the 20s of the XX-th century.

Creativity is welcome and saluted in Montparnasse, every "folly" is considered something wonderful and odd and weird people feel at home.

The 12th International Sailing Cup “Cyclades 2006” is due to set sails shortly in the beautiful Aegean Sea islands. It is a reknown and serious race, included in all official international Sailing Calendars.

Greek and international crews compete on equal basis. Handicapped participants are also encouraged to take part.

The International Sailing Cup “Cyclades” developed its reputation as a very popular and successful sporting event. The reasons for this are numerous.

One of the most incredible architectural masterpieces in Florence is the “Old” Bridge above the river of Arno. It is called Ponte Vecchio. The first day when I was sightseeing in Florence, it was rainy and cold. The intermittent rain made me feel as if I was in London, not in a southern country. But the moment I laid my foot on Ponte Vecchio the clouds cleared, and by the time I reached the middle to take a panoramic look, one of the most unforgettable rainbows in my life glistened in the sky.

The place where epochs blend, where the spirit of modernity and ancient times creates unprecedented feeling and atmosphere, is Florence, or as the locals know it, Firenze.
They call it the city where the Italian genius manifests itself with the greatest brilliance and intensity. Florence is world famous for its cultural and artistic heritage and traditions. It is the capital of the region of Tuscany (itself worth visiting because of its natural beauty and the speldours of its historical towns). Florence is sprawled in a kind of cradle surrounded by gentle hills in the middle basin of the Arno river. It was established by Romans under the name of “Florentia” in 59 BC.

The name is something very important - it creates the spirit and stamina to the one who bears it. Valencia's name comes from the latin for strength and vigour. In English we have a word with the same root - valour.
What is characteristic of nearly all of the Spanish cities is the incredible and extraordinary architecture. In Valencia there are Roman, Gothic, Arabic, Renaissance, Romanesque and Baroque architecture styles (and modern, of course). This eclectic and variegated mixture of different types only adds to the flavour and cosmopoliteness of the city. UNESCO World Heritage programme have proclaimed many of the monuments and buildings in town part of its list. There are many squares and gardens in Valencia, which creates a wondeful atmosphere for its citizens and visitors.

Every football fan in the world awaits the Sunday's final match between France and Italy. These two teams have a history of meeting at the finals, so everything is possible.
On Saturday Germany and Portugal will set the honorary third and fourth place.
Since the teams have usually the same colours, FIFA has set that Italy will wear the blue, and France - the white.

FIFA also revealed the candidates for the Adidas Golden Ball Award. These are: Thierry Henry, Patrick Vieira, Zinedine Zidane, Michael Ballack, Miroslav Klose, Gianluigi Buffon, Fabio Cannavaro, Andrea Pirlo, and Gianluca Zambrotta.

One of the most beautiful cathedrals ever erected by people is Notre-Dame de la Garde in Marseille, France. This exquisite and lavishly decorated Neo-Byzantine church lays at the top of one distinctive hill called Hill of La Garde, the highest point in Marseille. With its height of 62 m (532 ft) of limestone outcrop on the south side of the Vieux Port (The old harbour), the cathedral looks majestic in the eyes of the onlookers. It is not only a significant landmark, it is also a place of pilgrimage, which takes place every August the 15th (the feast of Assumption). The local citizens refer to the cathedral lovingly as 'La Bonne Mere' (the good mother).

The international festival FIB in Valencia will take place between 20 and 24th of July in Valencia. It is called FIB - Festival Internacional de Benicassim. The concentration of world-famous bands that have confirmed their participation in the festival is stunning - Depeche Mode, Madness, Placebo, Franz Ferdinand, Scissor Sisters, Queens of Noize... It will be a true Feast of the senses.

The open-air summer festival is in the right location - the beautiful coastal town of Valencia - so that you can combine a summer holiday and a big party. Local bands will also take part - in the beginning.

Since the murder of Dianne Brimble, there is a big society push to crack down and stop crimes on international cruise ships.
The most tough legislation concertning international cruise ships is the US one.
A group for lobbying for more such laws has been created, called "International Cruise Victims". Bree Smith, the vice-Presiden tof the group announces that countries, in which the group wants to have influence include Australia.

37 people are reported dead in a metro-crash in the Spanish city of Valencia.
Another 14 people are seriously injured including a pregnant woman. The accident happened on 03.07 at 1pm GMT.

The authorities consider 3 possible reasons for the tragedy.

One - a tunnel ceiling collapsed. Second - problems with the wheels, third - the train was speeding way over limit.

Eyewitness say nearly all of the victims were in the train. The first one to report for the accident was a terrified passenger who used his mobile.

The world famous botanical gardens, which actually host the biggest botanical collection in the world, were established in 1759 by Princess Augusta. She had a green finger and her passion developed into serious matter. Kew Gardens now spreads over 300 acres. There are the stunning number of 300,000 plant species.
The most important and renown attractions are the greenhouses (we all know what the climate in London is, and some of the plants are tropical and equatorial). In the complex you can see also architectural masterpieces like a Japanese Pagoda, Queen Charlotte's Cottage and the so-called Palm House.

One of the most renown literary events in Europe is the Prague annual writers' festival. The atmosphere of this intellectual gathering is very
lively and creative. It started in 1980 in London, but it was moved to the Czech capital in 1991.
Writers such as Ivan Klima, Ludvic Vaculik, Irwine Welsh, Salman Rushdie have discussed topics like "Divorce of politics and culture..." In 2005 the Festival took place in Vienna, and there are possibilities that it visits New York and Athens, too.

The biggest annual sporting event in the world, the Tour de France, will start in London in 2007, coming to the UK capital for the first time in its 100 year history. The Grand Départ, the start of the Tour, will take place in London and Kent over three days during the weekend of 6-8 July 2007. It is expected to attract more than a million visitors to the capital, providing a significant economic benefit for London.

In the Prague Zoo a baby hippo was born! His father Slavek was also born in captivity in the same zoo. Slavek, who is already 22, has had a number of kids and is renown for his gentleness towards his ladies and children. Maruska, the mother, is a first-timer, and because of her a little nervous state, she was separated from the happy father. She and the baby, which is male, are feeling quite ok.

Riht off the coast of Marseille there are very special and unique geological formations which have attracted millions tourists to the coasts of France.

A calanque (or calanche as they are known in Corsican) is made up of a geologic formation in the form of a deep valley with steep slopes, while part of it is submerged in the sea.
The most popular examples of this formation can be found in the Massif des Calanques in the Bouches-du-Rhone departement. This range sprawls for 20 km in length and 4 km in width along the coast of Marseille and Cassis, the highest point is in Marseilleveyre (432 m) and Mont Puget (565 m). Similar formations can also be seen on the French Riviera and off the island of Corsica (see Calanches de Piana).

The first open air musical festival in Prague is already a fact!

Quality music, the famous participants and organizes will provide fun for the people of Prague and its guests.
The festival will have international flavour, yet there are going to be typical Czech bands. On Saturday, 22nd of July is the priemer of The Prague International Blues and More Music Festival.
"Blues and More Music Festival"

On 20.06.2006 the Mayor of London Ken Livingstone made public plans for a new sustainable way of designing buildings in London.
The Mayor’s new idea - ‘Design for London’ - will include integrating urban design across the area known as Greater London (that's the captial and its suburbs)

Apart from Design for London, a new Design for London Advisory Group will be founded, chaired by Lord Rogers, the Mayor’s Chief Advisor on Architecture and Urbanism, to support the work of the new institution. Renown experts in sustainable design and architecture will participate in the project. The trend to build environmently friendly is noticeable at many places already. It is proved by the mayor's words:

On 19.06.2006 there was an auction of Italian painters in London. The highest sold picture was a portrait by Amedeo Modigliani. He painted his partner in 1919 "Jeanne Hebuterne (with hat)"
There is a tragic story behind this painting - it was made just a year before the suicide of Hebuterne, who was pregnant at the time with Modigliani's child. The painter died shortly after.
Yet what happened in Sotheby is not a record for a Modigliani. In November 2004 another Modigliani was sold for 30.3 mln dollars.

There are a few landmarks in Barcelona that are world famous and the second you see them you recognize it is the Barcelonean style and spirit. One of them is La Sagrada Familia (The Holy Family) the enormous magnificent Roman Catholic basilica. It is still under construction because the genial architect Gaudi, its creator, died during the construction. Nobody has managed to finish it. The mayor of Barcelona says it is easy to call some architect, but there is nobody and there will be nobody that could do it the way Gaudi would have. So the authorities of Barcelona have decided that it will not be touched. The official name of the basilica is "The Temple Expiatori de la Sagrada Família" or Expiatory Temple of the Holy Family.

If you ask the people of Barcelona where Casa Milà is, some of them might look surprised. That is so because the famous building by Gaudi is better known as 'La Pedrera' (the word in Catalan language meaning for 'mine'), The architectural masterpiece has been completed between the years 1905 to 1907. Its address is Passeig de Gràcia Number 92 ('passeig' means street in Catalan) in the Eixample district of Barcelona. It was ordered by rich tradesman Roger Segimon de Milà. The building today is part of the UNESCO World Heritage Sites List.

One of the most impressive and largest museums in London is the Kensington Palace. Actually, parts of it are kept as private residence of the Royal family (for the last 300 years has been so). The good news is that big parts of the castle are open to the public - for example the State Apartments and the Royal Ceremonial Dress Collecton.
Until 1st of July 2007 an interesting exhibition of stylish photos of Princess Diana dressed in evening clothing will be on. The photographer is Mario Testino.

One of the greatest historical sights in the stylish capital of the Czech Republic is the Prague Astronomical Clock - the so-called Prague Orloj. It is located at the south wall of Old Town City. It has three main parts - astronomical dial (which displays the position of the Sun and the Moon), including the sky and astronomical details. The other part is called "The Walk of the Apostles". The third part is a calendar with medallions symbolizing the months of the year. The first clock, which was built on a spot, was errected in the distant 1410 by Mikulas of Kadan. Later, Gothic sculptures were added. In its history, the clock started and stopped several times, but it underwent various repairment. It also burnt down one time, but was restored. The astronomical dial is actually built as a replica of "astrolabe". Astrolabe is a tool used in Medieval times in astronomy. The other view is that the Orloj is a primitive planetarium, showing a model of the universe. In the astronomical dial you can see the planets, the constellation and the sun. The signs of the zodiac are also represented. The sun which revolves around the zodiacal circle is golden!

Betwen 26 and 29 August 2005 in London Zoo people and animals will exchange places... naah, that's only half-true because animals won't come out. However people will be included in the exhibition of the zoo. Wearing nothing but fig leaves, a pride of Homo sapiens will sprawl around in the popular Bear Mountain area of the zoo. The humans will be taken care of properly by the professional keepers, who will not only feed the new guests but enrich their days with various type of entertainment.

One of the largest urban parks in Barcelona is called Park Guell. Its most excuisite characteristics is the presence of the spirit of Gaudi. The original idea for the magnificent park was to be an English-style garden. But there is nothing, which the genius of Gaudi has touched, which has remained as we expect it to be. The well known curves and mosaic, the characteristic benches makes you feel as if you are in Alice in Wonderland.

Nude cyclists rode their bikes around Spanish cities. The demonstration, in which hundreds of nude cyclists took part on Saturday to protest against streets full of cars and to demand more respect for bikers, and pollution-free transport in general.

With stickers and slogans "one car less" and "bio methanol" written on their backs with paint, the naked cyclists staged Spain's what has been the third annual Ciclonudista or "Nudecycle" in Madrid, Barcelona and Pamplona.

The nurseries in Barcelona are running low
and families have no place to give their children at.
According to statistics, just a little over 50% of the demands can be met - that means from 6580 families who have children between 0 and 3, only 3459 are really able to find a nursery. The district with the greatst problems are Les Corts and Gracia. The region with the highest number of places is Eixample.