Munich - The Secret Capital Of Germany

Munich is the capital of Bavaria Land (Bayern) in Germany and the third largest city in Germany, after Berlin and Hamburg. The city was founded under the name Munichen in 1158 by Henry the Lion Heart, duke of Saxony; half century later received the status of the fortress and was strengthened.In 1327, the entire city was destroyed by fire, but was rebuilt several years later by Louis IV, head of St. Roman Empire at that time. In 1806, Munich became the capital of Bavaria kingdom. Twenty years later, another prestigious educational institution, the University of Landshut, set his bases in Munich.

Munich is the city where The White Rose, a group of students, formed an anti-Nazi movement in June 1942 until February 1943. They have been arrested because they distributed leaflets in the University of Munchen. The city was seriously hurt during one of the Second World War, but after the American occupation (1945), Munich was rebuilt regarding a meticulously plan.When to visit Munich?
Munich is most visited between May and September, when the weather is beautiful. Months of April and October are perfect for visiting Munich because the city is not very crowded (with the exception of Oktoberfest) and the weather is sunny. Between November and March the streets of Munich are almost empty due to constant temperature below 0 Celsius degrees and because the sky is cloudy all the time.
What to see in Munich?
Munich is a popular tourist destination, being called secret capital of Germany. Marienplatz square, with the new and the old City Hall, interesting because of their towers where you can see medieval scenes. Peterskirche is the oldest church in the centre of Munich, Frauenkirche cathedral and is the most famous church in the city centre (the height of the towers, 99 meters, limited since 2004, new buildings of the city).
Munich has several art museums, including Alte Pinakothek, Neue Pinakothek, Pinakothek der Moderne. Other famous tourist attractions in Munich are English Garden, Museum of Science and Rathaus-Glockenspiel, a decorated clock which moves characters on the top of the City Hall. Probably the most famous sights of the city is Munich Oktoberfest, a celebration of beer, long two weeks from the end of September at the begining of October each year.Where to eat in Munich?
The kitchen in Munich and, in general, Bavarian food is not the most sophisticated kitchen in Europe. Most menus include combinations of pork, cabbage and potatoes. Specific restaurants are easily found in Munich but are slightly more expensive than traditional methods.How much costs a day in Munich?
In Munich, large stores, hotels and gas stations usually accept payment with credit cards but despite other European cities, money is always preferred instead of plastic. It's pretty easy to spend money in Munich. For one night at the hotel, public transport, visits to museums and lunch at the restaurant your budget starts from EUR 90.
How to get in Munich?
The Muchen's airport, Franz Josef Strauss, is little more busy than Frankfurt's but remains still a favorite transit point for most airlines. Flights from Europe, New York and Sydney are usual on Munich airport and the national ones are not neglected. Besides aircraft, other alternatives to reach Munich are: train (Munich has connections with the major European cities), buses and private cars which can be a convenient means of transport due to the good highway net from Germany.

Austria - Alps Mountains

Austria, officially the Republic of Austria is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It borders both Germany and the Czech Republic to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the west. The capital is the city of Vienna on the Danube River. The origins of modern Austria date back to the ninth century, when the territory of Upper and Lower Austria became increasingly populated. The name "Ostarrichi" is first documented in an official document from 996. Since then this word has developed into the Österreich.The Parliament of Austria is located in Vienna, the nation's largest city and capital. Austria became a federal, parliamentarian, democratic republic through the Federal Constitution of 1920. It was reintroduced in 1945 to the nine states of the Federal Republic. The head of state is the Federal President, who is directly elected by popular vote. The chairman of the Federal Government is the Federal Chancellor, who is appointed by the president. The government can be removed from office by either a presidential decree or by vote of no confidence in the lower chamber of parliament, the NationalratAs a federal republic, Austria is divided into nine states. These states are then divided into districts and cities. Districts are subdivided into municipalities. Cities have the competencies otherwise granted to both districts and municipalities. The states are not mere administrative divisions but have some distinct legislative authority separate from the federal government. The states are: Burgenland ( with capital at Eisenstadt), Carinthia or Kärnten (with capital at Klagenfurt ), Lower Austria or Niederösterreich (with capital at St. Pölten), Upper Austria or Oberösterreich (with capital at Linz), Salzburg (Salzburg), Styria or Steiermark (with capital at Graz), Tyrol or Tirol (with capital at Innsbruck), Vorarlberg (Bregenz ), and Vienna or Wien. Austria is a largely mountainous country due to its location in the Alps. The Central Eastern Alps, Northern Limestone Alps and Southern Limestone Alps are all partly in Austria. Of the total area of Austria, only about a quarter can be considered low lying, and only 32% of the country is below 500 meters. The high mountainous Alps in the west of Austria flatten somewhat into low lands and plains in the east of the country.The greater part of Austria lies in the cool/temperate climate zone in which humid westerly winds predominate. With over half of the country dominated by the Alps the alpine climate is the predominant one. In the East, in the and along the Danube valley, the climate shows continental features with less rain than the alpine areas. Although Austria is cold in the winter, in the summer temperatures can be relatively warm reaching 20-35 Celsius degrees.Austria's cuisine is derived from the cuisine of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. In addition to native regional traditions, it has been influenced above all by Hungarian, Czech, Jewish, Italian and Bavarian cuisines, from which both dishes and methods of food preparation have often been borrowed. The Austrian Cuisine is therefore one of the most multi and transcultural cuisines in Europe. Typical Austrian dishes include Wiener Schnitzel, Schweinsbraten, Kaiserschmarren, Knödel, Sachertorte and Tafelspitz. There are also Kasnockn, a macaroni dish with fresh Pinzgauer cheese and parsley, and Eierschwammerl (chanterelle) dishes. The Eierschwammerl are the native yellow, tan mushrooms. These mushrooms are delicious, especially when in a thick Austrian soup, or on regular meals. Austria is also famous for its Apfelstrudel (a kind of apple cake).

The most popular sport in Austria is alpine skiing and Austria shows constant dominance in the Nations-Cup. Similar sports such as snowboarding or ski-jumping are also widely popular. The most popular team sport in Austria is football. However, Austria rarely has international success in this discipline, though the 2008 UEFA European Football Championship is jointly being held with Switzerland. Besides football, Austria also has professional national leagues for most major team sports including ice hockey and basketball. Bobsleigh, luge, and skeleton are also popular events with a permanent track located in Igls, which hosted bobsleigh and luge competitions for the 1964 and 1976 Winter Olympics held in Innsbruck.

North Of Italy

Bolzano is a city in the Trentino-Alto Adige/Südtirol region of Italy. It is the capital of the province of Bolzano-Bozen. The Museum of Archeology in Bolzano is where the ice-mummy "Ötzi" is kept. The city is also the home of the Italian Army's Alpini High Command (COMALP) and some of its combat and support units.

Initially inhabited by the Raetians, the area was settled by the Romans in 15 BC, by general Nero Claudius Drusus, to whom referred the name of the first settlement in the area (an army camp with a bridge by the Isarco River). The nearby founded village was called Bauzanum. Bolzano has been a trading point since its foundation and elevation to a town over 800 years ago, due to its location in between the two major cities of Venice and Augsburg. Four times a year a market was held and traders came from the south and the north. The mercantile magistrate was therefore founded in 1635. Every market season two Italian and two German officers (appointed from the traders who operated there) worked in this office. The city was a cultural crosspoint at that time.
According to the 2001 census, 73% of the city inhabitants were Italian speakers. 26% speak German and 1% Ladin as their first language. The city thrives on a mix of old and new—high-quality intensive agriculture (including wine, fruit and dairy products), tourism, traditional handicraft (wood, ceramics) and advanced services. Heavy industry (machinery, automotive, steel) installed during the 1930's has now been mostly dismanteled. On the downside, the local economy is very dependent on the public sector, and especially the provincial government.The city's Italian-Austrian character, enhanced by the narrow cobblestone streets, Habsburg-era churches and pervasive bilingual signage give it the unique flavour of a city at crossroads between Italian and Austrian cultures. This, and its natural and cultural attractions make it a renowned tourist destination.
Cortina d'Ampezzo (German: Petsch-Hayden) is a town and municipality in the province of Belluno, Veneto, northern Italy. Located in the Dolomites, it is a popular winter sport resort known for its ski-ranges, scenery, accommodations, shops and après-ski scene. The area of Cortina d'Ampezzo is characterized by the typical Dolomite environment, mostly covered with large lawns intermingled with pinophyta woods. The most famous peaks in the city's neighbourhood include Le Tofane, Il Cristallo and Le Cinque Torri. Fauna include marmots, roe deers, chamoises and hares.

Treviso

Treviso stands at the confluence of Botteniga with the Sile , 30km north of Venice and 50km east of Vicenza, 40 km north-east of Padua, 120 km south of Cortina d'Ampezzo. The city is situated some 15 km south-west the right bank of the Piave River, on the plain between the Gulf of Venice and the Alps.
Treviso is a city in the Veneto, northern Italy. It is the capital of Treviso province and the municipality has 82,112 inhabitants (December 2004): some 3.000 live within the Venetian walls (le Mura) or in the historical and monumental center, some 80,000 live in the urban center proper, while the city hinterland has a population of approximately 170,000. It is the home of the headquarters of designer clothing company Benetton, and of the major appliance maker DeLonghi.

A nice winter animation in a store from Treviso.

Venice - Santa Maria della Salute

Starting in the Summer of 1629, a wave of the plague assaulted Venice, and over the next two years killed nearly a third of the population. Repeated displays of the sacrament, as well as prayers and processions to churches dedicated to San Rocco and San Lorenzo Giustiniani, had failed to stall the continuation of the epidemic. Echoing the architectural response to a prior assault of the plague (1575–76), when Palladio was asked to design the picturesque il Redentore dedicated to Christ the Redeemer, the Venetian Senate in October 22, 1630, decreed that a new church would be built. It was not to be dedicated to a mere "plague" or patron saint, but to the Virgin Mary, who for many reasons was thought to be a protector of the Republic.

It was also decided that the Senate would visit the church yearly, on 21 November, the Feast of the Presentation of the Virgin, in a celebration known as the Festa della Madonna della Salute, where the city's officials parade from San Marco to the Salute in the sestieri Dorsoduro for a service in gratitude for deliverance from the plague. This involved crossing the Grand Canal on a specially constructed pontoon bridge and is still a major event in Venice.

The desire to create a suitable monument at a place that allows for an easy processional access from Piazza San Marco, led senators to select the present site from among 8 potential locations. The Salute, emblematic of the city's piety, stands adjacent to the rusticated single story customs house or Dogana da Mar, the emblem of its maritime commerce, and near the civic center of the city. A dispute with the patriarch, Rome's representative in Venice and owner of the church and seminary at the site, was overcome, and razing of some of the buildings began by 1631. Likely, the diplomat Sarpi and Doge Nicolo Contarini shared the intent to link church to an order less-associated with the Papacy, and ultimately the Somascan Fathers, an order founded near Bergamo by a Venetian noble, were chosen.

A competition was held to select the building. Of the eleven submission (including designs by Alessandro Varotari, Matteo Ignoli, and Berteo Belli), only two were chosen for the final round. The architect Baldassare Longhena was selected to design the new church. It was finally completed in 1681, the year before Longhena's death. The other competitive, but losing, design was by Antonio Smeraldi (il Fracao) and Zambattista Rubertini. Of the proposals still extant, Belli's and Smeraldi's original plans were a conventional counter-reformation linear churches, resembling Palladio's Redentore and San Giorgio Maggiore; while Varotari's was a sketchy geometrical abstraction. Longhena's proposal was a concrete architectural plan, detailing the structure and costs, although also bold in design, he wrote:

"I have created a church in the form of a rotunda, a work of new invention, not built in Venice, a work very worthy and desired by many. This church, having the mystery of its dedication, being dedicated to the Blessed Virgin, made me think, with what little talent God has bestowed upon me of building the church in the … shape of a crown."

Later in a memorandum, he wrote:

"Firstly, it is a virgin work, never before seen, curious, worthy and beautiful, made in the form of a round monument that has never been seen, nor ever before invented, neither altogether, nor in part, in other churches in this most serene city, just as my competitor (il Fracao) has done for his own advantage, being poor in invention"Ultimately the Salute, while novel in many ways, still breathes the influence of Palladian classicism and the domes in Venice. The Venetian Senate voted 66 in favor, 29 against with 2 abstentions to authorize the designs of the 26 year old Longhena.

Venice - Academia

Antonio Lucio Vivaldi (March 4, 1678 – July 28, 1741), nicknamed il Prete Rosso ("The Red Priest"), was a Venetian priest and Baroque music composer, as well as a famous virtuoso violinist; he was born and raised in the Republic of Venice. The Four Seasons, a series of four violin concerti, is his best-known work and a highly popular Baroque piece.

This is the Academy of Venice.

Venice - Ponte Rialto

The first dry crossing of the Grand Canal was a pontoon bridge built in 1181 by Nicolò Barattieri. It was called the Ponte della Moneta, presumably because of the mint that stood near its eastern entrance.

The development and importance of the Rialto market on the eastern bank increased traffic on the floating bridge. So it was replaced around 1250 by a wooden bridge. This structure had two inclined ramps meeting at a movable central section, that could be raised to allow the passage of tall ships. The connection with the market eventually led to a change of name for the bridge. During the first half of the 15th century two rows of shops were built along the sides of the bridge. The rents brought an income to the State Treasury, which helped maintain the bridge.Maintenance was vital for the timber bridge. It was partly burnt in the revolt led by Bajamonte Tiepolo in 1310. In 1444 it collapsed under the weight of a crowd watching a boat parade and it collapsed again in 1524.

The idea of rebuilding the bridge in stone was first proposed in 1503, and several projects were considered over the following decades. The Venetian Senate appointed three noble provveditori to oversee a design competition for the rebuilding of the bridge, which included Jacopo Foscarini, Alvise Zorzi, and Marcantonio Barbaro of the noble Barbaro family. In 1551 the provveditori requested proposals for the renewal of the Rialto Bridge, and plans were offered by famous architects such as Jacopo Sansovino, Palladio and Vignola, all of which involved a Classical approach with several arches, officially judged inappropriate to the situation. Even Michelangelo was considered to design the bridge.

The present stone bridge, a single span, was designed by Antonio da Ponte, and completed in 1591. It is remarkably similar to the wooden bridge it succeeded. Two inclined ramps lead up to a central portico. On either side of the portico the covered ramps carry rows of shops. The engineering of the bridge was considered so audacious that architect Vincenzo Scamozzi predicted future ruin. The bridge has defied its critics to become one of the architectural icons of Venice.