Aglona Basilica

Basilica in Aglona Latvia was built in the late baroque style, it is decorated with two 60 meters high towers. Pilgrims come to Aglona every year on August 15 to celebrate the day of the Assumption of the Virgin Mary into Heaven. It is one of the most well-known sacred sites in the world. The Dominican order founded a monastery and built the first wooden church in Aglona in the 17th century. When in 1699 the wooden church burned down, the stone building of a monastery and the present temple was built on its place in 1768 – 1780. The interior finish of the church was created in the 18th – 19th century, but the pulpit and the organ – at the close of the 18th century.
(www.aglona.travel)

Five hundred meters from the Basilica is a former Catholic school, now is the usual school.

Aglona Basilica photos and panoramas are shooted: 24 of August, 2014.

Cities___

Stockholm inner city. Visiting Sweden.

Stockholm live stream

Skansen museum is the first open-air museum and zoo in Sweden and is located on the island Djurgården in Stockholm, Sweden. It was founded in 1891 by Artur Hazelius (1833–1901) to show the way of life in the different parts of Sweden before the industrial era.

About the inner city

Norrmalm contains the central business district known as City, with several department stores and shopping malls, museums, hotels and restaurants, most of major theatres, and the central railway station. The pedestrian shopping street Drottninggatan runs in a north-south direction through the area, by the square Sergels Torg. The islets Skeppsholmen and Kastellholmen can be reached on foot. Vasastan is a mainly residential area, where the Odenplan square offers shopping and nightlife.

Östermalm is an affluent borough, including Nationalstadsparken, “the National City Park”. The Stureplan square is a hub for upmarket shopping and nightlife. Södra Djurgården is an island-park, with several major tourist venues – the Skansen open air museum, the Gröna Lund amusement park, and the Vasa Museum. The borough also contains a forest, a museum cluster with the Science and Technology Museum and Kaknästornet, as well as Stockholm University and the Royal Institute of Technology. The Frihamnen cruise port is on the eastern edge.

The northern part of the Old Town is located the Royal Palace and the Swedish Parliament. The rest of the island is a collection of old buildings and narrow cobblestone streets. The adjacent island Riddarholmen holds a church and several old government buildings.

Södermalm is a rugged island with buildings of all ages. It is always commonly referred to as Söder (The South). Fjällgatan offers some of the best views of Stockholm and the Baltic Sea inlet. The major north-south street Götgatan and adjacent streets are with a variety of restaurants, bars and shops. It starts like a hump next to Slussen with the busy pedestrian zone called Götgatsbacken (“The slope of Götgatan”), and passes Medborgarplatsen (“Citizens’ square”), which has plenty to offer in terms of shopping and night life. The “bohemian” area south of Folkungagatan is occasionally nicknamed “SoFo”, with obvious inspiration from SoHo. Among its variety of restaurants, cafés, pubs, odd shops and trendy boutiques one will encounter the most liberal assembly of successful but also wannabe Swedes. Shopping and exposing their offspring at the idyllic square Nytorget or just basking in the lovely park Vita Bergen. At Skeppargränd people still inhabit an entire block of remaining small wooden houses along cobbled streets from a bygone era. Långholmen is a lush island off Södermalm. This is where the prison Långholmsfängelset is situated. The cells have since been converted into small hotel rooms, and the sometimes macabre history of this historical complex is displayed in cabinets. The waterfront has some of central Stockholm’s most popular beaches and there is also room for nudists on some of the cliffs.

Kungsholmen is an island at the western inner city, with Stadshuset (Stockholm City Hall) at its eastern tip. Further west, a collection of relaxed neighbourhood bars and restaurants can be found. West of the Fridhemsplan transport hub and the Västermalmsgallerian shopping mall, the island is more suburban. Lilla Essingen and Stora Essingen are two smaller, mainly residential, islands that belong to the borough of Kungsholmen. Close to the park Rålambshovsparken is a nice natural beach, Smedsuddsbadet, suitable for children.

wikitravel.org

Stockholm walking tour map

A pictures and panoramas of Stockholm photo & Skansen museum photo gallery added August, 22, 2014.

Cities___, Photo Gallery_all the ways___

Grodno is city of Kings.

Grodno or Hrodna (Belarusian: Гродна [ˈɣrodna]; Russian: Гродно [ˈɡrodnə]; Latin: Grodna, Grodnae; Lithuanian: Gardinas; Polish: Grodno; Yiddish: גראדנא) is a city in Belarus. It is located on the Neman River, close to the borders of Poland and Lithuania (about 20 km (12 mi) and 30 km (19 mi) away respectively). It has 327,540 inhabitants (2009 census).
The modern city of Grodno originated as a small fortress and a fortified trading outpost maintained by the Rurikid princes on the border with the lands of the Baltic tribal union Yotvingians. Its name derives from the Old East Slavic verb gorodit’, i.e., to enclose, to fence (see “grad” for details).

Modern city

The city has one of the largest concentrations of Roman Catholics in Belarus. It is also a center of Polish culture, with the considerable number of Poles living in Belarus, residing in the city and its surroundings. All the while, the Eastern Orthodox population is also widely present here. The city’s Catholic and Orthodox churches are important architectural treasures.

This city is known for its very important Medical University, where many students from different parts of Belarus acquire an academic degree, as do a good number of foreign students as well. Other higher educational establishments are Yanka Kupala State University (the largest education center in Hrodna province) and Agricultural university.

Grodno History

Mentioned in the Primary Chronicle under 1127 as Goroden’ and located at a crossing of numerous trading routes, this Slavic settlement, possibly originating as far as the late 10th century, became the capital of a poorly attested but separate principality, ruled by Yaroslav the Wise’s grandson and his descendants.
Central Street

Along with Navahrudak, Hrodna was regarded as the main city on the far west of so-called Black Ruthenia, a border region that neighboured the original Lithuania. It was often attacked by various invaders, especially the Teutonic Knights. In the 1240–1250s the Grodno area, as well as the most of Black Ruthenia, was controlled by princes of Lithuanian origin (Mindaugas and others) to form the Baltic state—Grand Duchy of Lithuania—on these territories. After the Prussian uprisings a large population of Old Prussians moved to the region. The famous Lithuanian Grand Duke Vytautas was the prince of Grodno from 1376 to 1392, and he stayed there during his preparations for the Battle of Grunwald (1410). Since 1413, Grodno had been the administrative center of a powiat in Trakai Voivodeship.

Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth

To aid the reconstruction of trade and commerce, the grand dukes allowed the creation of a Jewish commune in 1389. It was one of the first Jewish communities in the grand duchy. In 1441 the city received its charter, based on the Magdeburg Law.

The city was the site of two battles, Battle of Grodno (1706) and Battle of Grodno (1708) during the Great Northern War. After the First Partition of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, Grodno became the capital of the short-lived Grodno Voivodeship in 1793.
As an important centre of trade, commerce, and culture, Grodno remained one of the places where the Sejms were held. Also, the Old and New Castles were often visited by the Commonwealth monarchs including famous Stephen Báthory of Poland who made a royal residence here. In 1793 the last Sejm in the history of the Commonwealth occurred at Grodno. Two years afterwards, in 1795, Russia obtained the city in the Third Partition of Poland. It was in the New Castle on November 25 of that year that the last Polish king and Lithuanian grand duke Stanisław August Poniatowski abdicated. In the Russian Empire, the city continued to serve its role as a seat of Grodno Governorate since 1801. The industrial activities, started in the late 18th century by Antoni Tyzenhaus, continued to develop.

Up to the Second World War and the Holocaust, like many other cities in Europe, Hrodna had a significant Jewish population: according to Russian census of 1897, out of the total population of 46,900, Jews constituted 22,700 (around 48% percent).

A pictures and panoramas photos of Grodno photo gallery added 29 of April, 2014.

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Fabulous city. Brugge photos.

Once over the encircling canal and inside the city walls, Bruges closes in around you with street after street of charming historic houses and a canal always nearby. In recent years, the city has turned so much towards tourism the locals sometimes complain they are living in Disney-land. And if you can get away from the chocolate-shops, you can visit some more quiet areas s.a. St. Anna, and imagine what life in the late middle ages must have been like.

The Bruges Card provides discounts to most of the major attractions, and can be picked up at any of the hostels around town. The reduced rate cannot be used in conjunction with a student rate (both student and Bruges card rates are identical) and hence is most useful for older travellers.

Several Youth Hostels (Bauhaus), and probably the train station and tourist information, offer a useful map with some very interesting, ‘non-tourist’ places to see during the day and some unique places to visit at night. It provides a good way of getting an authentic feel for the town whilst avoiding the tourist honey-pots and allows you to find some hidden gems.

Some highlights:

Groeninge Museum, Dijver 12, B-8000. 7 days 9:30AM-5PM. Known as ‘The city museum of Fine Arts’, it houses a collection of artworks that span several centuries (14th-20th), focusing mainly on works by painters who lived and worked in Bruges. €8 / €6 (audioguide and ticket Arents House and Forum+ included in the entrance).

Basilica of the Holy Blood (Heilige Bloed Basiliek), Burg 10. Apr-Sep 9:30AM-11:50AM & 2PM-5:50PM, Oct-Mar 10AM-11:50AM & 2PM-3:50PM. A beautiful church on the Burg square. It houses a relic – a vial of blood that is said to be that of Jesus – and was built in the Gothic style. Try and get there early so you can view the chapel when it is quiet and not filled with tourists. And don’t forget to visit the chapel underneath, in heavy Romanesque style – a contrast to the lovely light Gothic above. Free.

Brewery De Halve Maan, Walplein 26. Apr-Oct M-Sa 11:00-16:00, Su 11:00-17:00. This brewery annex beer museum offers a tour of the beer making process. A history of the brewery is provided, as well as an overview of the city from its tower. The tour lasts for 45 minutes and is a good way to get a feel for Belgian beer making. The tours start at the exact turn of the hour, be at least fifteen minutes early as there is a maximum amount of people that can join. The entrance price includes one drink of Brugse Zot or Straffe Hendrik and is served after the tour at the outside terrace or indoor bar. €6.50 including 1 beer.

Onze Lieve Vrouwkerk, Mariastraat. A fascinating church with architecture from the Romanesque and Gothic periods. In the east end of the church are very fine tombs of Charles the Bold and his daughter Mary of Burgundy – in contrasting Gothic and Renaissance styles, despite their superficial similarity. The church also houses one of the few Michelangelo sculptures outside of Italy, the “Madonna with child”. Free.

Jerusalem church. In a quiet area of the city, a highly unusual church with octagonal tower built by the Adornes brothers, merchants of Italian extraction. It includes a fine black tournai marble tomb, late Gothic stained glass, and a tiny and rather spooky chapel containing an effiggy of the dead Christ. The entrance fee also covers the Lace Museum in the former Adornes mansion, where you can see local women and girls learning this traditional craft.

The Begijnhof. Also known as the convent, between the centre of the station and the city, with white painted small houses and fine plane trees, is a quiet place to walk – groups are discouraged.

The Hospital of St John. 09:30 – 17:00, Closed Mondays. Sint-Janshospitaal contains a museum of six paintings by Hans Memling, within the early medieval hospital buildings. €6 with Bruges card / €8.

Choco-Story Museum, Wijnzakstraat 2 (Sint-Jansplein). 10AM-5PM. This museum is a must see for chocolate enthusiasts as it describes chocolate’s transition from cocoa into chocolate. Its low cost tasty exhibits make it well worth the time (and Belcolade’s gently overt marketing). Be sure to stay for the chocolate making exhibition to get some excellent samplers. €6 with Bruges card / €7.

DiamantMuseum, Katelijnestraat 43. 10:30AM-5:30PM. Diamond museum has a large range of exhibits ranging from mining all the way to polishing and all the history in between. Everyday at 12:15 there is a live polishing demonstration. Individuals €6, Groups €4.5, Students €3.

The Friet Museum, Vlamingstraat (opposite Academiestraat). 10AM-5PM. Check out the world’s only frites (fries or chips) museum which tells the story of the humble potato from South America and how it has evolved into a fry. Don’t forget to try the tastiest fries cooked by the guy who cooked for the Belgian Royal Family. 6 € : adult 5 € : group (from 15 people, reservation required) 5 € : students, 65+ 4 € : children from 6 to 11 years.

Bruges is visited by a huge number of tourists and it sometimes becomes quite annoying, especially around the Markt and Burg squares. The important thing to remember, however, is that very few tourists venture far away from the main shopping area, so if you want some peace and quiet you should simply explore the many small cobbled streets away from the main squares.

Lucifernum (retsin’s lucifernum), twijnstraat 6-8 (city center). An amazing (private) art gallery with gothic cemetary in a subtropic garden located in the old Freemasons temple (1756 – 1882) 1000m2 art and mystery in bruges old city center open on sundays from 18u00 till 21u00 entrance: 6 euro.

Bruges (French). Brugge (Dutch).

wikitravel.org

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The Volkswagen automuseum in Wolfsburg

A spotlight on days gone by – reawakening memories, rekindling emotions and conjuring up that typical gurgly chugging sound that a Beetle boxer engine makes.

Impressions that move us all – whatever our age. Located in close proximity to Volkswagen’s Autostadt, the Volkswagen Auto Museum documents a remarkable piece of German automobile history, indeed, of the history of the Federal Republic of Germany itself.

The Auto Museum opened in April 1985. Its display agenda is devoted to Volkswagen-brand product exhibits as well as prototypes and one-offs. That includes screen star Herbie and the first prototypes of the Golf and other models alongside novelties such as a Beetle made of wood and an aqua Golf with hydraulic pontoons.

A tour of the “Milestones in Automobility” display at the Autostadt’s ZeitHaus and the exhibit at the Volkswagen Auto Museum, which showcases jewels in the crown of the Volkswagen brand itself, are a must for automobile enthusiasts of all ages.

A total of 140 vehicles are set out for display on 5000 square metres of Museum exhibition space. Regularly scheduled special display shows and additional exhibits attract regular visitors to the Auto Museum time and again

See photos of the Autostadt, Volkswagen factory in Wolfsburg, in this travel photo gallery from Verde Wanderer. Pictures taken at 12 of December, 2013.