Memories and hints of a travelling IT professional.
Tel Aviv is a very modern, western city. It is much more hedonistic and less religious then the rest of the country – but it also seems to be missing an ancient city center. In fact the name of the town is Tel Aviv-Yafo, its second part refering to the old town Jaffa being the germ cell of the city. Tel Aviv itself was built later on by settlers, dividing the land by plan to create a new town.
At the end of the over-crowded, commercialized and steadily inclining Champs-Élysées you’ll find the Arc de Triomphe at Place Charles de Gaulle. It has been built by order of Napoleon to commemorate the victory of the battle of Austerlitz in 1806. You can walk trough a subterranean passage to the Arc and get on top – seeing 14 main streets crossing.
Continue reading “The Étoilé”
Not as vast as Père Lachaise but also bigger than big. The Cimetière de Montmartre is a more quite graveyard close to the center of the neighborhood of Montmartre. You can stroll around and look out for history.
Continue reading “Cimetière de Montmartre”
To me the most beautiful church in the world and the place to be on a Sunday morning if you are in Paris. The Basilique du Sacré Cœur is situated on the hill of Montmartre and is visible from most places in Paris, France. It has been built as a memorial to the lost war against Germany in 1870/71.
Continue reading “Basilique du Sacré Cœur de Montmartre”
One of the major sights in Paris, close to the Champ de Mars. Built in 1887 by Gustave Eiffel as a watch tower for the World Exhibition – and in remembrance of the French revolution – this iron giant draws the attention of people from all over the world. It’s the landmark of Paris and can be seen from most places inthe city.
Continue reading “Tour Eiffel”
The biggest graveyard in Paris, France. A vast space with over 200 year old graves, temples and figurines. You can walk for hours through this crowded necropolis and watch out for the graves of lots of celebrities. Not an easy game because of the high number of paths and sepultures.
Continue reading “Cimetière du Père Lachaise”
The catacombs of Paris might be a really interesting sight. There are a lot of tunnels under the city, because for building it a lot of stone was needed, taken from there. Later, when the graveyards where full the skulls and bones where transfered to these tunnels and arranged decoratively.
Continue reading “Les Catacombes”
In the northern east of Paris, France you will find the Parc des Buttes-Chaumont, an artificial garden with grottos, cliffs and a rope bridge on mountainous ground. It has been created by order of Napolean the 3rd in the 19th century.
Continue reading “An artificial English garden”
A wonderful gothic cathedral in the center of Paris, France – directly on Île de la Cité. It has been built between 1163 and 1345, offers space for 9000 worshippers and is well known to the world (at least by Victor Hugos “The Hunchback of Notre-Dame“). It is the blueprint for gothic cathedrals around the world.
Continue reading “Cathédrale Notre-Dame de Paris”
The main sight of Bratislava (also there is not too much to see up there) is the castle of Bratislava (Bratislavský hrad), visible from every part of the city. There have been settlements on the 85 meter high hill from the stoneage on, the castle has been used for centuries and as been rebuilt several times. The last big modification dates back to the time of Maria Theresa.
Continue reading “Bratislavský hrad”