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Saxony's capital Dresden is located in what once was called Valley of the Clueless - as the city is encircled by mountains and hills, the signals of the West German TV
stations never seemed to reach people's antennas, forcing them to watch the propaganda programmes the Socialist party had hatched up for them. Once an important
cultural and commercial metropolis featuring Germany's then most impressive architecture, Dresden was practically wiped out within two nights of air raids in February,
1945. The city never really got over that shock, but was eventually resurrected. Nowadays, it is marked by hard contrasts: most of the famous buildings have been restored
or rebuilt from scratch; the Neustadt, formerly a beggars' quarter, is flourishing to a surprising extent; various parks and recreational areas contribute to its beauty. Then
again, it is notoriously full of monotonous districts and appalling areas. While these contrasts have clearly been typical of German cities since World War II, and are
probably concomitant symptoms of large cities themselves, one is inclined to claim that majesty and deformity are scarcely as close to each other as in Dresden. It almost
seems as if each side was the prerequisite to its counterpart.
Frankfurt
Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, Frankfurt's most famous resident, once said that "Frankfurt is full of curiosities". There is still a lot of truth in these words today. One such
curiosity is the interplay between the traditional and the modern, which is manifested in the mishmash of towering skyscrapers and tiny, half-timbered houses. With over
half a million residents, a large immigrant community, the highest crime rate in the country and - to top it all - the notoriously bad-humoured Hessians, Frankfurt displays all
the signs of being an extraordinarily ordinary metropolis.
After servere Allied bombing in March 1944, Frankfurt's Altstadt (old town) was almost completely destroyed. Yet there are still many sights to see here - the Römer,
Leinwandhaus, Paulskirche, Dom and Goethe Museum are only a few yards apart from each other. If you want to go shopping, you'll find plenty of choice in shopping
malls such as the Schillerpassage or the Freßgass Passage. Evening entertainment in the form of theatre or other cultural pursuits can be found in places like Schmiere,
Tigerpalast or the Volkstheater
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Barcelona has transformed itself from smug backwater into one of the most dynamic and stylish cities in the world. Summer is serious party time, with week-long fiesta fun.
But year-round the city sizzles – it's always on the biting edge of architecture, food, fashion, style, music and good times.
The buildings, many the work of the eccentric genius Gaudí, will blow you away. The art, with significant collections by Picasso and Miró, will make you clammy all over.
The people, with their exuberance, their duende, their persistent egalitarianism, will fascinate you.
Barcelona's enviable position between the mountains and the sea ensures year-round outdoor fun. It is a city that is inconceivable until you get there, unbelievable while
you walk its streets and unforgettable after you've gone - if you ever manage to tear yourself away.
Area: 487 sq km, Population: 1.6 million, Country: Spain, Time Zone: GMT/UTC +1 (Central European Time), Telephone Area Code: 93
Madrid
This is Spain's headiest city, where the revelling lasts long into the night and life is seized with the teeth and both hands. Strangers quickly become friends, passion blooms
in an instant, and visitors are swiftly addicted to the city's charms.
Madrid may not have the Roman origins that get city historians hot and bothered, and it may be a comparative parvenu, selected from rural obscurity to become the
capital only in the second half of the 16th century, but it oozes an ebullience that rarely fails to move.
In no other European capital will you find the city centre so thronged so late into the night, as though some unwritten law forbade sleeping before dawn. To experience
Madrid is to explore its restaurants and eateries, prop up its countless bars, and be swept up in the nocturnal madness of its music scene and clubs. Madrid has always
been a city of immigrants and transients, and the result is an unusually open and accessible city. Ambitious programs to modernise the city are afoot, but the gatos (locals)
of Madrid can rest assured that their town remains as refreshingly unlike Paris, London or Rome as ever.
Area: 607 sq km, Population: 3 million, Country: Spain, Time Zone: GMT/UTC +1 (Central European Time), Telephone Area Code: 91
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After being arrested by the russian police for humilating their history ;) I carried on with my tour to Linnengrad. During the tour there you can see the highlights of the city,
beautiful wide river Neva with its granite embankments, large and small bridges, the unique architectonic ensembles such as: the Spit of Vasilievsky Island and Peter& Paul
Fortress, the Decembrists' Square with the monument of Peter the Great, St.Isaac's Cathedral and Isaakievskaya Square, the spacious & majestic Palace Square with the
best baroque style building Winter Palace and famous Alexander Column, the Summer Garden with its marble Italian statues and Summer palace of Peter the Great, the
Field of Mars and harmonic Arts Square with Russian museum, Our Saviour's Church in Russian style, Smolny monastery and Institute and, of course, Nevsky Avenue
(Nevsky prospekt) - the main street of the city.
Moscow
If you want to explore Moscow, you should start from the very center, which is Red Square and, of course, visit all places nearby such as Kremlin and its main Spasskaya
tower with the huge clock in the middle; St.Bazil's Cathedral which was built the 16th century to commemorate the victory of Russia over Kazan khanate; the Monument to
Minin and Pozharsky, the leaders of the home guards, that was constructed in 1818 on the project of sculptor I. Martos; the G.U.M department store covering most of the
east side of the Square, opposite the Kremlin which really isn't a department store, but rather a mall with hundreds of separate shops.
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The "Free and Hanseatic City" of Hamburg is Germany's second-largest metropolis with one of Europe's biggest ports. Elegant and cosmopolitan, Hamburg is now a city of
palatial office buildings, magnificent promenades, international musicals, extravagant shopping malls - and the famous Reeperbahn and St. Pauli. The magical aura of
faraway places is still alive in the old warehouse quarter and the little canals. Hamburg is also Germany's greenest city, with many spacious lawns and lovely parks.
( Never trust all what you see ;) )
Sailplanes (gliders) are to the sky as sailboats are to the water. By flying in rising air,
glider pilots can soar long distances, gain great height or remain aloft for hours.
World records include a climb to 49,000 feet (higher than most jets fly), an
1,100-mile flight in South America, and one flight of over 56 hours.
A sailplane is an unpowered heavier-than-air aircraft; it can climb for the same
reason that ashes (also heavier-than-air) rise from a fire. In still air, a glider
descends, for example, at 200 feet per minute. If the air in which the glider is flying
rises at this same rate, the glider maintains a constant altitude. If the air rises more
rapidly, the glider will gain altitude.
Gliders are flown much like airplanes; they have the same basic flight controls.
Since a glider has no engine, it must be towed aloft. Airplane tows are the most
common because the glider can be towed to wherever good soaring conditions
exist. Automobile and winch tows can launch a glider only to about 1500 feet
above the airport but are also economical and an effective way for a student to
practice many flights.
Three types of soaring are possible: thermal soaring, ridge soaring, and wave
soaring. Each is defined by the manner in which air is forced to rise.
Probably one of the most exciting feelings you might encounter in your
entire life. Cruising at a speed of 40 knots or higher with that huge mass
breaking the water is something you "feel" invading you from toe to top
whether you are at the helm position driving or just sitting by and
enjoying.
I did not have the chance driving a lot of cruising yachts, but I have
joined cruising trips for quite a lot of times. Its an experience you must
enjoy. Its simply "Breaking free" !
