Sights Archives ⋆ Page 31 of 156 ⋆ The Passenger

July 5, 2023July 22, 2023

Strokkur

Geysers are a wonderful natural phenomenon: water is heating up underground and every now and fountain of hot water is splashing out. Maybe the best place to see this on Iceland is the geyser Strokkur at Selfoss (not to be confused with the waterfall carrying the same name). It is very reliable and shooting out water every five to six minutes; a fountain that is 20 to 30 meters high. That is why there is always a large crowd surrounding the hot spring and waiting for the next eruption.

July 5, 2023July 22, 2023

Þingvellir

Northeast of Reykjavík you can find the Þingvellir national park, an area with wonderful nature and special in different ways. First of all, the Eurasian and the American plate drift apart there and form the Almannagjá (‘all men’) valley. You can hike between the high rocks and the Öxará river runs there, forming the beautiful waterfall Öxarárfoss. But this place was also always important in Icelandic history as the location of its ancient parliament, the Alþingi.

July 4, 2023July 21, 2023

Hallgrímskirkja

One of the most important sights of Reykjavík is the Hallgrímskirkja church. It is a Protestant church in expressionist style, the building looks like a row of basalt columns with different height and therefore fits really well to the island. The 74.5 meters high tower is located on a hill close to the city center and you can buy a ticket to get by elevator to the top – giving you fantastic views on the capital city. The church was built from 1945 on and was finally finished in 1986.

June 27, 2023June 30, 2023

Schlachtensee

Berlin has a lot of water in rivers and lakes. The largest lake is the Müggelsee in the East, the one most often used for swimming is the famous Wannsee. Most often considered as the most beautiful lake is the Schlachtensee at Steglitz-Zehlendorf. It has a tubular shape and is often used for swimming due to its good water quality; but you can also have long hikes along its shore or use it for diving or stand-up paddling.

June 27, 2023September 8, 2023

Für dich soll‘s rote Rosen regnen

The Waldfriedhof Zehlendorf is a cemetery in a forest belonging to the city quarter Zehlendorf (now Nikolasee) of Berlin, Germany. It was created after World War II and is one of the cemeteries in Berlin where you can find the graves of celebrities which have a strong connection to the city. The cemetery still has the character of a forest and you can enjoy long walks in nice nature; while doing so you will find the graves of personalities like Jakob Kaiser, Paul Löbe, Walter Scheel and Otto Suhr.

June 25, 2023June 25, 2023

A Midsummer Night’s Dream

The Waldbühne Bremke is located in a forest close to the village of Bremke, belonging to the community of Gleichen. It was created in 1949 honoring the Brothers Grimm and for entertaining visitors mostly with fairytales. The Waldbühne offers 942 seats, the season is always between May and September (with a break for summer vacations). They play family-oriented classics like Snow White, Rumpelstiltskin or The Magic Flute.

June 10, 2023June 23, 2023

Matka canyon

Just fifteen kilometers afar from Скопје you can discover the Матка canyon. Here the river Treska is floating through high mountains (up to 700 meters high) and a dam for generating electricity formed a beautiful lake. People get there to take a boat tour, to rent a canoe or to simply hike through the valley. The place also offers a wonderful restaurant with good views on the lake and two tiny cloisters hidden in the mountains.

June 10, 2023June 23, 2023

Sv. Pantelejmon

Church of Saint Panteleimon, Горно Нерези

I love Byzantine churches and the best ones are those hidden in secluded areas. One of these is the church Sv. Pantelejmon at Горно Нерези, not far from Скопје in the Vodno mountains. It was three times painted with the oldest layer being from the 12th century CE; the newest one from the 19th century has been completely removed to reveal the ancient masterpieces. The specialty of this church built in 1164 is that it shows the depicted characters as persons with emotions which is pretty unusual.

June 10, 2023June 23, 2023

Mileniumski Krst

Скопје, North Macedonia, is beautifully located in a valley surrounded by mountains. The Hausberg of the city, reachable pretty fast from the center, is the Vodno. It is located in the southwest and the highest point (Krastovar) is 1066 meters high. On top of it you can find the Millennium Cross (or Mileniumski Krst) – a 76 meters high cross made of steel and illuminated at night. It was placed there in 2002 as a symbol of the new millennium.

June 9, 2023June 23, 2023

St. Clement of Ohrid

The church Sv. Kliment Ohridski at Скопје, North Macedonia, has a special architecture: with its 36 meters wide cupola and round shapes it could be confused with a mosque. But once you get closer you see the richness in decoration and the icons typical for an orthodox Christian church. It was opened in 1990 (with construction works already starting in 1972) and is therefore a rather young church.