Countries/cities/towns Game, Lets Play Options

[Bhavita]

That pic is picture purrrrfect


New Brunswick

Canada’s only officially bilingual province (French and English), New Brunswick is the largest of Canada's three maritime provinces, and home to some of the most spectacular Natural Wonders





http://www.tourismnewbrunswick.ca/

Some more details on facts and figures here :

http://www.tourismnewbrunswick.ca/Home/Abo...ctsFigures.aspx
http://www.tourismnewbrunswick.ca/Home/Abo...oryCulture.aspx

This post has been edited by Bhavita: Dec 16 2009, 10:32 PM

[simplefable]

KOLN...@ COLOGNE

Cologne (German: Köln] is Germany's fourth-largest city (after Berlin, Hamburg and Munich), and is the largest city both in the German Federal State of North Rhine-Westphalia and within the Rhine-Ruhr Metropolitan Area, one of the major European metropolitan areas with more than ten million inhabitants. It is one of the oldest cities in Germany, having been founded by the Romans in the year 38 BC.

Cologne lies on the River Rhine. The city's famous Cologne Cathedral (Kölner Dom) is the seat of the Catholic Archbishop of Cologne. The University of Cologne (Universität zu Köln) is one of Europe's oldest universities..

The Cathedral here is one of the most massive structures i have ever seen...Construction of Cologne Cathedral began in 1248 and took, with interruptions, until 1880 to complete– a period of over 600 years. It is 144.5 metres long, 86.5 m wide and its two towers are 157 m tall. The cathedral is one of the world's largest churches and the largest Gothic church in Northern Europe. For four years, 1880-84, it was the tallest structure in the world, until the completion of the Washington Monument. and as usual, nothing comes free here, anyone who needs to go atop the structure needs to pay five or ten Euros..!
On our europe trip, we were let out here, to have our meal on our own...Thankgod...we could locate the McDonalds with some veg snacks...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cologne





To show the relative size of the Cathedral..here is one more picture..

[Sharad]

N
Naperville, Illinois
-decent town to live in, i believe one year it ranked one of the best 100 places to live in.
west of chicago.

[Bhavita]

Wow....600 years... was there some construction / repair still going on at the church? I see something in white atop (near the steeple)...

KOLN...@ COLOGNE

Cologne (German: Köln] is Germany's fourth-largest city (after Berlin, Hamburg and Munich), and is the largest city both in the German Federal State of North Rhine-Westphalia and within the Rhine-Ruhr Metropolitan Area, one of the major European metropolitan areas with more than ten million inhabitants. It is one of the oldest cities in Germany, having been founded by the Romans in the year 38 BC.

Cologne lies on the River Rhine. The city's famous Cologne Cathedral (Kölner Dom) is the seat of the Catholic Archbishop of Cologne. The University of Cologne (Universität zu Köln) is one of Europe's oldest universities..

The Cathedral here is one of the most massive structures i have ever seen...Construction of Cologne Cathedral began in 1248 and took, with interruptions, until 1880 to complete– a period of over 600 years. It is 144.5 metres long, 86.5 m wide and its two towers are 157 m tall. The cathedral is one of the world's largest churches and the largest Gothic church in Northern Europe. For four years, 1880-84, it was the tallest structure in the world, until the completion of the Washington Monument. and as usual, nothing comes free here, anyone who needs to go atop the structure needs to pay five or ten Euros..!
On our europe trip, we were let out here, to have our meal on our own...Thankgod...we could locate the McDonalds with some veg snacks...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cologne





To show the relative size of the Cathedral..here is one more picture..

[simplefable]

Bhavita...dont think so. isnt it the spire ?? hmm...

taking E..

EL SALVADOR


El salvador literally means..Republic of the saviour. It is the smallest and the most densely populated country in cental america. It has dropped it's own currency Colon..and adopted US dollar in 2001. Posting a pic of San vicente Volcano...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/El_Salvador

[Bhavita]

Thought Spire / Steeple meant the same

Reykjavik

Capital of Iceland, believed to be the location of the first permanent settlement in Iceland. More to read up on http://www.lonelyplanet.com/iceland/reykjavik


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reykjav%C3%ADk

This is interesting : Reykjavik receives only four hours of daylight on the shortest day in the depth of winter; during the summer the nights are almost as bright as the days. I wonder how this must be!





This post has been edited by Bhavita: Dec 20 2009, 07:36 PM

[simplefable]

Bhavita..after you said ..i looked up the dictionary..to know about spire and steeple..
believe me, am terrible in grammar and vocabulary.. what comes to my aid is the sentences from the umpteen books i have read..

Reykjavik !! i remember for a summit or something long back. Whew..i like sunny weather so i would curl up and die there for sure..

KENT

A County of south east england, this is popularly known as the garden of England..Orignally called as Cantia..and Cent. Incidentally it is one of the warmest places in UK..the highest recorded is 38.5 C...the highest ever in UK !!




http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kent

[Bhavita]

Tahiti.... the name has an exotic feel to it...


A part of French Polynesia, Tahiti is a semi-autonomous territory of France with its own assembly, president, budget and laws. France's influence is limited to subsidies, education and security.
Tahitians are French citizens with nearly full civil and political rights. French is the official language but the Tahitian language and the French language are both in use.

Also known as o'tahiti. Famous for its black sand beaches, it is the largest and most populous island of the 118 islands of French Polynesia. The mountainous interior is adorned with deep valleys, clear streams, and high waterfalls, all bathed in green iridescence of Mother Nature's light. The coastal lands, edged with a rugged coastline, are home to fields of tropical flowers.

French painter Paul Gauguin lived on Tahiti in the 1890s and painted many Tahitian subjects. Papeari has a small Gauguin museum..

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tahiti

Look out for some amazing pics on the above wikipedia link page....





This post has been edited by Bhavita: Dec 24 2009, 12:50 AM

[simplefable]

Tahiti...the pictures are just fabulous ! once had a brochure on the place..with amazing photos !

INNSBRUCK

The name literally means..the bridge over the inn. It is the capital city of the federal state of Tyrol in western Austria. It is located in the Inn Valley at the junction with the Wipptal (Sill River), which provides access to the Brenner Pass, some 30 kilometers (19 mi) south of Innsbruck. Located in the broad valley between high mountains, the Nordkette (Hafelekar, 2,334 meters (7,657 ft)) in the north, Patscherkofel (2,246 meters (7,369 ft)) and Serles (2,718 meters (8,917 ft)) in the south, it is an internationally renowned winter sports centre, and hosted the 1964 and 1976 Winter Olympics...



On our europe trip, we stayed three nights at Innsbruck..everyday, getting into the bus at around seven in the morning..and getting back only around eight or so in the night. We enjoyed the window shopping around the place..with lighted windows...and the best treat was to sit in the hotel room balcony and view the alps..imposing, majestic..and inspring. We one day had Upma for breakfast there...the thought of which always makes me smile...We never change..do we ?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Innsbruck

[Bhavita]

Only Upma? Not curd rice ?? ;-)

There is something about sitting and watching mountains in front of you - standing tall, undaunted and strong and protecting!!!

Next K... let me think up of some nice city and come back...

[simplefable]

NO curd rice...
But then we had idli / wada / sambar / chutney ..just before enterering the city of Rome...which is another story..

[Bhavita]

[color=#990000]Kishkindha -[/color]

Going back into history this time...

Kishkindha - has a mention in Valmiki's Ramayan as the Vanara kingdom, and is the other name for Hampi - (Vijaynagar - Krishna Devayaraya's empire)

Hampi is now a UNESCO World Heritage Site with some of the most treasured ruins and stone architecture. The Archaeological Survey of India continues to conduct excavations in the area, to discover additional artifacts and temples.

I never realised that Kishkindha was the other name for Hampi. And to think, that as a child I visited Hampi every year with family!!! I have great memories of the times we used to climb down rocks , go through caves and reach the Tunga river side and play at the banks of the river...




http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kishkindha
http://wapedia.mobi/en/Kishkindha_Kingdom
http://www.indiantemplesportal.com/karnata...e-anegundi.html

In 2010, from 27th January onwards - the Hampi Utsav ( A cultural extravaganza) takes place at Hampi. Organised by the Government of Karnataka and Tourism Ministry where all of India's prominent artistes will perform

[simplefable]

I am well versed with Kishkindha from Puranas..not this one. We still use the word freely when kids all get together and create one !
Never visited Hampi..and now it is on my priority list. I love when i get a chance to attend artists at these places...enjoy light and sound shows a lot.

AMSTERDAM

Amsterdam is the capital of Holland. The name denotes Dam on the river Amstell. I have never seen more bicycles in one place than that city. Bicycles enjoy the privilege of a special lane denoted by green lines on the roads..and any violation by motor vehicles is treated seriously.
The most funny thing that hit me was the way the houses leant a little to the front..i.e., the top edge of every house is a little ahead of the bottom edge ! and the width of the houses is very less compared to the length / depth. The guide explained that the taxes for the houses entirely depends on the width of the house which made them build their houses like that. But since moving furniture is a headache when width of the house is less, they constructed their houses leaning to the front so that a joist is attached on the top with a pulley which helps in hauling the furniture into the house throught windows !! Quite funny to see houses with as little width as six feet !!

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amsterdam









Since the City has river and canals all around, it is lovely to travel along the watercouses !

[Bhavita]

M... selected two... both with some amazing pics.. not sure what to upload...coming up soon


Selecting Morocco



A country nestled on the Northwestern tip of Africa and separated from the rest of the continent by the Atlas Mountains and the Sahara. Morocco is situated on the extreme northwestern corner of Africa and is bordered by Mauritania and Algeria, both to the south and east.

The history, geography and climate are more closely related to the Mediterranean rather than to the rest of Africa, and for this reason visitors are often struck by the odd sensation of having not quite reached Africa in Morocco.

Morocco's varied geography includes no less than four separate mountain ranges, in addition to lush river valleys, beautiful sandy coasts, and wide expanses of desert. The three most prominent mountain ranges, which run parallel to each other from the southwest to the northeast, are the Middle Atlas, the High Atlas, and the Anti-Atlas. The ascent of the country's highest peak, Jebel Toukbal (13,665 ft./4,165 m.), is a spectacular and not particularly difficult High Atlas trek. The Moroccan coastline, which fronts onto both the Mediterranean and the Atlantic, offers plenty of great beaches as well as a number of fascinating old coastal cities. In the southeast, Morocco's mountain ranges yield inexorably to the desolate expanse of the Sahara. The rivers that flow down this side of the High Atlas support long, narrow, and lush river valleys that resemble linear oases.

In the north, its fine beaches, lush highland valleys, and evocative old cities reinforce this impression. Yet, as one moves south and east, into and over the starkly beautiful ranges of the Atlases, Morocco's Mediterranean character melts away like a mirage.

http://www.geographia.com/morocco/
http://www.lonelyplanet.com/morocco
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Morocco






This post has been edited by Bhavita: Jan 1 2010, 12:16 PM

[simplefable]

Used to think that Morocco is only vast deserts..and nothing else !! Quite informative.

OSLO


Oslo is the capital of Norway..the name derived from the old word Norse. The city is also a hub of Norwegian trade, banking, industry and shipping. It is also an important centre of maritime knowledge in Europe, and is home to approximately 980 companies and 8,500 employees within the maritime sector—among which are some of the world's largest shipping companies, shipbrokers and insurance brokers...
It is the most expensive city in the world..beside Tokyo, Copenhagen and Paris.
Oslo has a humid continental climate (Dfb according to the Köppen climate classification system). Because of the city's northern latitude, daylight varies greatly from more than 18 hours in midsummer to around 6 hours in midwinter. Despite its northerly location, the climate is relatively mild throughout the year because of the Gulf Stream.

Oslo has pleasantly mild to warm summers with average high temperatures of 20–22 °C (68–72 °F) and lows of around 12 °C (54 °F). Temperatures exceed 25 °C (77 °F) quite often, and heatwaves are common during the summer. In the summer of 2009, a heatwave caused temperatures to exceed 30 °C (86 °F) in eight straight days, peaking at nearly 34 °C (93 °F).The highest temperature ever recorded was 35 °C (95 °F) on 21 July 1901.
Never been to the Scandinavian countries..




http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oslo