The most beautiful opera houses in the world

Opera de Monte Carlo
Located in the principality of Monaco, the Opera de Monte Carlo was opened in 1879. Designed the magnificent and extravagantly, the opera house was recently renovated. Over 80,000 gold leaves were applied to paintings and moldings, a five-ton chandelier has been entirely rebuilt. As it seats only 524, it is often difficult to get tickets. This the only opera house in the world to feature exterior views (thanks to the windows overlooking the Mediterranean) from within the concert space.

Teatro di San Carlo
Located in Naples, this is the oldest opera in Europe that has never closed the door. Opened on 4 November 1737 and then it was the largest in the world with its 3300 seats. Teatro di San Carlo is included in World Heritage by UNESCO.

The Mariinsky Theatre
Opened in 1860, this is pre-eminent theater is located in St. Petersburg, Russia. Named after Empress Maria Alexandrovna, wife of Tsar Alexander II and there is a bust of the Empress in the main entrance foyer. The building was severely damaged during the 900-day Siege of Leningrad, but later restored in 1944. With its marvelous 1,625-seat auditorium it is one of the greatest world class music theatres.

Bavarian State Opera
Built in 1818, Bavarian State Opera is located in Munich and features an impressive exterior and a magnificent interior. Destroyed in World War II it was moved to another place and built in its original form. Re-opened in 1963, the State Opera seats 2,100 people. Today the opera is among the most famous in the world.

Teatro Amazonas
This opera is in the heart of Manaus, deep in the Amazon rain forest of Brazil. Opera House was constructed during the Belle Epoque – the era of rubber that makes Manaus one of the most prosperous cities on the continent. The dome of the opera is covered with 60,000 ceramic tiles imported from France and currently has 701 seats

Romanian Athenaeum
This concert hall is one of the most beautiful buildings in Bucharest. It was built in 1888 in neoclassical style by architect Albert Galeron and considered as one of the architectonical jewellery of Romania. The auditorium (28, 50 m in diameter and 16 m high) having a special acoustics, seats 600 in the stalls and another 52 in loge seating.

The biggest stadiums in the world

1. Rungrado May Day Stadium
Situated in Pyongyang, North Korea this monumental stadium contains an incredible 150,000 people. Opened on May 1, 1989 in honor of Labor Day, hence his name – Rungrado May Day. Its shape resembles a blooming flower and has 16 arches arranged in a circle. The stadium can seat 150,000 which is the largest stadium capacity in the world.

2. Salt Lake Stadium
The second largest stadium in the world is located in Calcutta, India. Built in 1984, it accommodates 120 000 people in three-story configuration. The sradium is mainly used for athletics and soccer games

3. Stadium Michigan
Known also as “Big House” and “Carnegie Hall of all Sports” this football stadium is located in Ann Arbor, Michigan. Originaly built in 1927 it is the largest stadium in the United States with an official capacity of 109,901. Michigan Stadium is the third largest stadium in the world.

4. Beaver Stadium
Location: Pennsylvania. Built in 1960, Beaver Stadium has an official seating capacity of 107,282 and it is the second largest stadium in the Western Hemisphere and is on the fourth place in the rankings of the largest sports stadiums.

5. Azteca Stadium
Azteca is located in Mexico City and is the official stadium of the national soccer team of Mexico. Azteca is the only stadium which has held two World Cup finals football in 1970 and 1986. With a capacity of 105 491 people is the biggest stadium in Latin America and fifth in the world.

6. Neyland Stadium
Neyland Stadium is the home of the football team at Tennessee Volunteer. In 2010, the Tennessee Terrace was added raising stadium capacity to 102,455 people. This makes it the third largest non-racing stadium in the United States and the sixth largest non-racing stadium in the world.

7. Ohio Stadium
Built in 1922. with a budget of $1.3 million and renovated in 2001 for $194 million stadium has the shape of a horseshoe, hence its nickname “horseshoe”. Hosts football matches, but also many concerts. With a capacity of 102,329, it is the fourth largest football stadium in the United States and the seventh largest non-racing stadium in the world.

8. Bryant -Denny Stadium
Opened in 1929, Bryant-Denny is the stadium of the football team at Alabama. The stadium was originally called Denny Stadium in honor of the former rector of the University of Alabama George Denny. Later add the name Bryant in honor of the famous Alabama coach Paul “Bear” Bryant. The stadium has a seating capacity of 101,821, and is the fifth largest stadium in the nation and the eighth largest non-racing stadium by seating in the world.

9. Darrell Royal Stadium
From 1924 Darrell Royal is the stadium of the football team the University of Texas Longhorn. Located in Austin, Texas with a capacity of 100.119 makes is the largest football stadium in seats in Texas, the largest of the Big 12 Conference, the six largest stadium in noncompetitive National College Athletic Association (NKAA) and the U.S. and ninth nonc-racing largest stadium in the world.

10. Melbourne Cricket Ground
Oldest stadium in the list and the largest in the Southern Hemisphere, built in 1853. The first game of cricket took place on 30 September 1854. Until 1970 the stadium fit to 130 000 people, but due to safety measures its capacity is reduced. Redevelopments have now limited the maximum seating capacity to just over 100,000 making it the tenth largest stadium in the world.

11. Azadi Stadium
Azadi Stadium is Iran’s national and largest in the country. Built to households Asian Games in 1974, the stadium is part of a large sports complex including swimming pools, volleyball facilities and more. The stadium officially has a capacity of 100,000 people making it the biggest Stadium in Middle East and 11th in the world.

12. Camp Nou Stadium
Since its construction in 1957 Camp Nou Stadium is a home of FC Barcelona. He is an elite stadium by UEFA and it is played many international matches and finals of the UEFA Champions League. It has a capacity of 99, 354 seats. This is the largest stadium in Europe and 12th largest in the world.

The Ciudad Universitaria de Caracas

The Ciudad Universitaria de Caracas is the main Campus of the Central University of Venezuela. Designed by the Venezuelan architect Carlos Raúl Villanueva between 1940 and 1960 it is an outstanding example of the modern avant-garde ideas in architecture.

Consists of forty buildings in nine groups or zones, this vast urban complex covers an area of about 2 km². The complex also includes masterpieces of visual arts, like the “Clouds” of Alexander Calder, the Olympic Stadium, and the Covered Plaza.

Considered a masterpiece of architecture and urban planning it is one of the most successful applications of Modern Architecture in Latin America. This is also the only university campus declared as a World Heritage Site by UNESCO (in 2000).

Photo of the day – Rio Urubamba Slithers

The river Urubamba (or Urupanpa) is born in the knot of Vilcanota, in Peru, from where it crosses great part of the territory of the Cusco Region with the name of Vilcanota river. When passing by the city of Urubamba, it receives the name of Urubamba river.The turbulence of the Urubamba river, crossing the Sacred Valley of the Incas, is lent for the practice of the reduction of rivers, that is one of more interesting the tourist attractions of adventure in Peru.

Google Earth Placemark – Rio Urubambe

Amazing views from Perito Moreno Glacier in Argentina

The Perito Moreno Glacier is located in the Los Glaciares National Park in the south west of Santa Cruz province, Argentina. It is one of the most important tourist attractions in the Argentine Patagonia.

If you are on excursion there probably first you will go through the Patagonia valley with its natural environment of species such as guanacos, ostriches, foxes, etc. Afterwards you will enjoy many interesting spots: Cerro Comision o De Los Elefantes, river Centinela, Cerro Frias (guanacos site), many Patagonian farmhouses and, across the Mitre river you will get into National Park Los Glaciares. Then, you will go 35 km along the coast of of Lake Argentino’s Rico Branch, among vegetation of incredible trees such as nires, lengas, notros and cherry trees and at Curva de Los Suspiros you will get the first panoramic view of Glacier Perito Moreno.

An ice cloak, or glacial cap, covers this Protected Area of 600,000 hectares. Among the 356 glaciers, the Perito Moreno is the most outstanding one, having a front of 5 km long and a height of over 60 meters above the level of the water. The 250 square km ice formation, of 30 km in length, is one of 48 glaciers fed by the Southern Patagonian Ice Field located in the Andes system shared with Chile. This icefield is the world’s third largest reserve of fresh water.

The Perito Moreno Glacier is one of only three Patagonian glaciers that are not retreating. Periodically the glacier advances over the L-shaped “Lago Argentino” (“Argentine Lake”) forming a natural dam which separates the two halves of the lake when it reaches the opposite shore. With no escape route, the water-level on the Brazo Rico side of the lake can rise by up to 30 meters above the level of the main lake. The enormous pressure produced by this mass of waters finally breaks the ice barrier holding it back, in a spectacular rupture event. This dam/rupture cycle is not regular and it naturally recurs at any frequency between once a year to less than once a decade.

The terminus of the Perito Moreno Glacier is 5 km wide, with an average height of 60 meters above the surface of the water, with a total ice depth of 170 meters. It advances at a speed of up to 2 m per day (around 700 m per year), although it loses mass at approximately the same rate, meaning that aside from small variations, its terminus has not advanced or receded in the past 90 years. At its deepest part, the glacier has a depth of approximately 700 m.

The Perito Moreno glacier, located 78 km from El Calafate, was named after the explorer Francisco Moreno, a pioneer who studied the region in the 19th century and played a major role in defending the territory of Argentina in the conflict surrounding the international border dispute with Chile.

Below you can view really astonishing picture of Perito Moreno’s beauty.

Google Earth Placemark – Perito Moreno Glacier

The womb of Mankind – lake Titikaka in Bolivia

The Incas called Cuzco “the navel of the world” and the lake Titikaka “The womb of Mankind” , lakeside dwellers of today regard themselves as the “oldest people in the world”.Lake Titikaka in Bolivia is one really amazing place to see. It covers approximately 9000 square km and like many things in Bolivia it takes another highest championship: it is the world’s highest navigable lake (12,500 feet) 3,820 meters, its depth was recently measured at 457 Mt. Lake Titikaka has long been known to be not only the largest but also the most sacred in the world. Many cultures and civilisations have risen near it.The Tiawanaku culture began its raise around the time of Christ and lasted over a millennium , extending far into Puno and Northern Chile. Tiawanaku ceremonial sites were constructed along the shores of Lake Titikaka, indicating that the lake was considered sacred at least 2,000 years ago. The Incas believed they originated from the lake Titikaka and that their bearded, white leader/deity Viracocha began his acts of creation on this island . Clearly lake Titikaka played a dominant role in Andean beliefs for over two millennia.

The best known of Titikaka island are Taquile and Uros, the floating islands made of bulrushes, on the Peruvian side of the lake and the islands of the Sun and of the Moon on the Bolivian side. Bulrushes (totora) grow in the low waters of the lake , they have always been of multiple use for the natives . The people from the Titikaka region weave this plant very well to make rafts which seem to be made of woven glob fibre; they cut swiftly through the waters of the great lake. Birds nests among the bulrushes , providing eggs for human consumption , the matted plants serve as a foundation to built bulrush houses on. The most important geographical features of Titikaka include the Copacabana peninsula which contains remains of cultures dating back to long before the Spanish influence in South America .

Bolivia as country is a premier adventure travel destination. It is the fifth-largest country in South America and one of the most geographically diverse countries in the world. The Altiplano, a high mountain plateau where Andean civilization first developed, lies between two ranges of the Andes mountains that tower over 23,000 feet. Visitors come to this region to experience the amazingly beautiful waters, landscapes, and cultures of Lake Titikaka. Bolivia’s terrain ranges from spectacular Andean peaks to dense Amazonian rain forests, such as the jungles of Madidi National Park, Noel Kempf Mercado National Park on the border with Brazil.

In Bolivia, with the largest indigenous population in the Americas, Andean culture is alive and strong. Visitors experience Bolivia’s great indigenous heritage and enjoy traditional native architecture, clothing, colorful markets, handcrafts, dances, music, and seeing the daily life of Aymara communities. In La Paz, campesina women in bowler hats and flared skirts sell their products in huge open air markets. In some regions, you are more likely to hear the indigenous Aymara language than Spanish. Being in Bolivia is like stepping back in time by many years.

That’s how Lake Titikaka looks from space. Here is Google Earth Placemark for Lake Ttitikaka in Bolivia.

Quick Facts for Lake Titikaka:

Altitude: 12,500 ft (3,810m) above sea level; the highest navigable lake in the world, lying between Peru and Bolivia
Area: covers 3,205 square miles (8,301 square kilometers)
Length: 120 miles running northwest to southeast
Widest point: 50 miles
Avg. depth: 328 ft.
Fishes: being an alpine lake only two species are native to the lake—killfish (Orestias) and catfish (Trichomycterus); trout were introduced in the 1950s.
Other species: Large frog (Telmatobius) up to 1 ft. long
Other facts: -Fed by 25 rivers
-May tide as much 16ft.
-Forty-one islands

World’s Best Beaches: Venezuelan Playa Medina

Probably everyone of us who likes Sun and Water has his own imaginary beaches where to chill, drink some cocktails, party, etc. Here is one of the World’s Best Beaches, the Playa Medina in Venezuela. It is located about an hour east of Carupano, on the Paria Peninsula in the state of Sucre. Originally Playa Medina was a coconut plantation it has numerous palms fringe the crescent beach, and the dense forests of the mountains form a contrasting deep green backdrop to the golden color of the sand.This beach has one really breathtaking bay, which measures near 500 meters across in length. Playa Medina has notable touristic infrastructure, whith the immaculation of the beach, with plenty of secure parking and numerous establishments for local gastronomical delicacie, it is nestled under the palm trees are 8 small cabins offering all-inclusive packages that include all food and drink, beach services, excursions within the area, as well as transfers from Carupano airport. No water sports are allowed here, so the emphasis is on relaxation.

There is also an offer for a water-buffalo ranch in the swampy lowlands where visitors stay in attractive thatched huts with magnificent views of the watery savannah. The owners are keen conservationists and are experimenting with alternative power sources such as solar energy and biogas. They use no chemicals on the ranch, and consequently the wildlife is thriving.

Playa Medina is on a 10-hour drive from Caracas and is accessible only via rough dirt roads and retain its virtually pristine beauty, except during local holidays when they can get crowded. It has comfortable, unobtrusive cabanas and restaurant facilities run by the private consortium Corpomedina. The Medina cabanas cost a little more $136.

Further east, where the roads end and the Parque Nacional Peninsula de Paria begins, you can really have beaches all to yourself. Trails that crisscross the park’s rarely visited mountains offer the chance of some close-up views of the wildlife. This includes several species of birds found nowhere else in the world, like the yellow-faced redstart, the white-throated barbtail and the scissor-tailed hummingbird. Below are some other “strange birds”, but fortunately i think they are just chillin in Playa Medina.

palmeras en playa medina

Brief introduction of Cuba

The Caribbean harbors a jewel in the Island of Cuba. The tropical Island extends 750 miles (roughly the size of Pennsylvania) and is a beautiful mix of mountain ranges and plains. There are over 200 bays and 289 sun drenched beaches to explore. The main ports are located in the provinces of Cienfuegos, Havana, Manzanillo, Mariel, Matanzas, Nuevitas and Santiago de Cuba.

Cuba has no plants or animals that are lethal to humans (Yes, this includes poisonous snakes!) The mountain ranges include the Sierra Maestra to the East, the Cordillera de los Organos to the West, and the Sierra del Escambray in the central region.

Cuba National sign
The elongated island of Cuba is the largest island in the Caribbean and is bounded to the north by the Straits of Florida and the greater North Atlantic Ocean, to the northwest by the Gulf of Mexico, to the west by the Yucatan Channel, to the south by the Caribbean Sea, and to the east by the Windward Passage. The Republic comprises the entire island, including many outlying islands such as the Isle of Youth, previously known as the Isle of Pine, with the exception of Guantanamo Bay, a naval base that has been leased by the United States since 1903. The mainland is the world’s 16th largest island.The economy of Cuba is based on state ownership with some small scale private enterprise existing at the fringes. Tourism has become one of the largest sources of income for Cuba, and in 1993 the U.S. dollar was made legal tender (the country operated under a dual-currency system); this arrangement was, however, revoked on 25 October 2004.The Cuban economy was hit hard in the early 1990s following the collapse of the Soviet Union and the Comecon economic bloc, with which it had traded predominantly. More recent problems include high oil prices, recessions in key export markets such as sugar and nickel, damage from hurricanes (most recently an estimated 1 billion dollars economic damage from hurricane Charley), depressed tourism, and faltering world economic conditions. In late 2003, and early 2004, both tourism levels and nickel prices increased. One other factor in the recovery of the Cuban economy is the remittances of Cuban-Americans (which constitute almost 3% of the Cuban Economy, by some estimates). Cuba currently trades with almost every nation in the world (including the U.S.). However, Cuba owes billions in Paris Club debt to nations such as France, Japan and Germany.