" fox fire "
20 October 2008
13 October 2008
FRANCE - Parc Astérix
Parc Astérix
Parc Astérix is a theme amusement park in France, based on the stories of Asterix (by Albert Uderzo and René Goscinny). Situated approximately 35 km (22 miles) north of Paris and 32km (20 miles) from Disneyland Resort Paris, in Plailly in the département of Oise, it opened in 1989. The park is operated by Compagnie des Alpes. It is especially well known for its large variety of roller coasters, and has begun incorporating rides and themes from historic cultures such as the Romans and the ancient Greeks.
SPAIN - IBIZA - vedra island
Vedra Island
Es Vedrà is a Balearic island approximately 2 km off the western coast of Ibiza, in the area of Cala d'Hort. The island is a nature reserve and is uninhabited.
GIBRALTAR (GREAT BRITAIN)
Gibraltar's defence is the responsibility of the tri-service British Forces Gibraltar. The army garrison is provided by the Royal Gibraltar Regiment, originally a part-time reserve force which was placed on the permanent establishment of the British Army in 1990. The regiment includes full-time and part-time soldiers recruited from Gibraltar, as well as British Army regulars posted from other regiments. The Royal Navy maintains a squadron at the Rock. The squadron is responsible for the security and integrity of British Gibraltar Territorial Waters (BGTW). The shore establishment at Gibraltar is called Rooke after Sir George Rooke who captured the Rock for Archduke Charles (pretender to the Spanish throne) in 1704. Gibraltar's strategic position provides an important facility for the Royal Navy and Britain's allies. Ships from the Spanish Navy do not call at Gibraltar. British and U.S. nuclear submarines frequently visit the Z berths at Gibraltar. A Z berth provides the facility for nuclear submarines to visit for operational or recreational purposes, and for non-nuclear repairs. The Royal Air Force station at Gibraltar forms part of Headquarters British Forces Gibraltar. Although aircraft are no longer permanently stationed at RAF Gibraltar, a variety of RAF aircraft make regular visits to the Rock and the airfield also houses a section from the Met Office. The Rock is believed to be a SIGINT listening post. Its strategic position provides a key GCHQ and National Security Agency location for Mediterranean and North African coverage. During the Falklands War, an Argentine plan to attack British shipping in the harbour using frogmen (Operation Algeciras) was foiled. The naval base also played a part in supporting the task force sent by Britain to recover the Falklands. In January 2007, the Ministry of Defence announced that services to the base would be provided by the private company SERCO, resulting in industrial action from the trade unions involved.
FINLAND - SUOMI
Finland, officially the Republic of Finland (Finnish: Suomi; Swedish: Finland ), is a Nordic country situated in the Fennoscandian region of northern Europe. It has borders with Sweden to the west, Russia to the east, and Norway to the north, while Estonia lies to its south across the Gulf of Finland. The capital city is Helsinki. Around 5.3 million people reside in Finland, with the majority concentrated in the southern part of the country.[1] It is the eighth largest country in Europe in terms of area and the most sparsely populated country in the European Union. The native language for most of the population is Finnish, a member of the Finno-Ugric language family most closely related to Estonian and one of the four official EU languages not of Indo-European origin. The second official language, Swedish, is spoken by a 5.5 percent minority. Finland is a democratic, parliamentary republic with a mostly Helsinki-based central government and local governments in 415 municipalities. A total of a million residents live in Greater Helsinki (including Helsinki, Espoo, Vantaa and Kauniainen) and a third of the GDP is produced there. Other major cities include Tampere, Turku, and Oulu. Finland was historically part of Sweden and from 1809 an autonomous Grand Duchy within the Russian Empire. Finland's declaration of independence in 1917 from Russia was followed by a civil war, wars against the Soviet Union and Nazi Germany, and a period of official neutrality during the Cold War. Finland joined the United Nations in 1955 and the European Union in 1995 and participates in the Eurozone. Finland has been ranked the second most stable country in the world, in a survey based on social, economic, political, and military indicators. Finland has seen very good results in many international comparisons of national performance such as the share of high-technology manufacturing, public education, the rate of gross domestic product growth, and the protection of civil liberties.
PORTUGAL - PORTO (ceramic)
The São Bento Train Station / Estação de São Bento
PORTUGAL - PORTO (OPORTO)
SPAIN - Puerto de Santa María
El Puerto de Santa María
El Puerto de Santa María (Spanish for "The port/harbour of Saint Mary", locally known as just El Puerto) is a city located on the banks of the Guadalete River in the province of Cádiz, Spain. According to the 2005 census, the city has a population of 82,306, of which 50,000 live in the urban center, and the remainder in the surrounding areas. The town of El Puerto de Santa Maria is 10 km north east of Cadiz across the bay of Cadiz and is best known for its ferry El Vaporcito which has been in operation for 76 years carrying passengers to and from Cadiz to El Puerto.
PORTUGAL - ALGARVE - LAGOS
LAGOS - PONTA da PIEDADE
Lagos (literally "Lakes") is a city and a municipality at the mouth of the river Bensafrim in the southern region of Algarve, in Portugal. The municipality has a total population of 27,041 inhabitants. The city itself has a population of 14,675. The majority of the population lives along the coastal line and works in tourism and services. The inland region in sparsely inhabited, with the majority of the people working in agriculture and forestry. Lagos is located approximately 35 kilometers east of Sagres Point, the southwesternmost point of Europe. To the north of Lagos is the road to Milfontes and Sines, that winds through the scenic protected landscape of the Southwest Natural Park.
PORTUGAL (typical)
Windmill / Moinhos de Vento
A windmill is a machine that is powered by the energy of the wind. It is designed to convert the energy of the wind into more useful forms using rotating blades or sails. The term also refers to the structure it is commonly built on. In much of Europe, windmills served originally to grind grain, though later applications included pumping water and, more recently, generation of electricity. Recent electricity-generating versions are referred to as wind turbines.
BULGARIA - VELIKO TARNOVO
Veliko Tarnovo is a city in north central Bulgaria and the administrative centre of Veliko Tarnovo Province. Often referred to as the "City of the Tsars", Veliko Turnovo is located on the Yantra River and is famous as the historical capital of the Second Bulgarian Empire, attracting many tourists with its unique architecture. The old city is situated on three hills, Tsarevets, Trapezitsa and Sveta Gora raising amidst the meanders of the Yantra. Tsarevets housed the palaces of the Bulgarian Emperors and the Patriarchate, as well as a number of administrative and residential edifices surrounded by thick walls. Trapezitsa was known for its many churches and as the main residence of the nobility. In the Middle ages it was among the main European centres of culture and gave its name to the Tarnovo Artistic School of architecture, painting and literature. With its spectacular location and magnificent architecture, Veliko Tarnovo is considered to be one of Bulgaria's most beautiful cities. Veliko Tarnovo is an important administrative, economic, educational and cultural centre of Northern Bulgaria.
BULGARIA
BULGARIA - Multiview
The state of Bulgaria forms part of the Balkans in south-eastern Europe. It borders five other countries: Romania to the north (mostly along the River Danube), Serbia and the Republic of Macedonia to the west, and Greece and Turkey to the south. The Black Sea defines the extent of the country to the east. Bulgaria comprises the classical regions of Moesia, Thrace, and Macedonia. Old European culture within the territory of present-day Bulgaria started to produce golden artifacts by the fifth millennium BC. The country preserves the traditions (in ethnic name, language and alphabet) of the First Bulgarian Empire (632/681 – 1018), which at times covered most of the Balkans and spread its alphabet, literature and culture among the Slavic and other peoples of Eastern Europe. Centuries later, with the decline of the Second Bulgarian Empire (1185 – 1396/1422), the country came under Ottoman rule for nearly five centuries. The Russo-Turkish War of 1877-1878 led to the re-establishment of a Bulgarian state as a constitutional monarchy in 1878, with the Treaty of San Stefano marking the birth of the Third Bulgarian State. After World War II, in 1945 Bulgaria became a communist state and part of the Eastern Bloc, lead by Todor Jivkov (from 1956 to 1989), who presided for 33 years. In 1990, after the Revolutions of 1989, the Communist party gave up its monopoly on power and Bulgaria transitioned to democracy and free-market capitalism. Currently Bulgaria functions as a parliamentary democracy under a unitary constitutional republic. A member of the European Union since 2007 and of NATO since 2004, it has a population of approximately 7.6 million.
FRANCE - BIARRITZ
Biarritz (French: Biarritz; Gascon Occitan: Biàrritz; Basque: Biarritz or Miarritze) is a town and commune which lies on the Bay of Biscay, on the Atlantic coast, in southwestern France. It is a luxurious seaside town and is popular with tourists and surfers. Biarritz also boasts some of the best beaches in Europe and has won multiple awards for their top class standards.
Pope John Paul II
Pope John Paul II (Latin: Ioannes Paulus PP. II, Italian: Giovanni Paolo II, Polish: Jan Paweł II) born Karol Józef Wojtyła ; (May 18, 1920 – April 2, 2005) was a notable Polish religious leader who reigned as the 264th Pope of the Roman Catholic Church and Sovereign of the State of the Vatican City from October 16, 1978 until his death, almost 27 years later. His was the second-longest pontificate after Pius IX's 32-year reign. He was the only Polish pope and the first non-Italian pope since Adrian VI (Dutch) in the 1520s. John Paul II was pope during a period in which the Catholic Church's influence declined in developed countries, but expanded in the Third World. During his reign, the pope traveled extensively, visiting over 100 countries, more than any of his predecessors. He remains one of the most-traveled world leaders in history. He was fluent in numerous languages: his native Polish and also Italian, French, German, English, Spanish, Croatian, Portuguese, Russian, and Latin. As part of his special emphasis on the universal call to holiness, he canonized a great number of people. He beatified 1,340 people (some listed here), more people than any previous pope. The Vatican asserts he canonized more people than the combined tally of his predecessors during the last five centuries, and from a far greater variety of cultures. Whether he had canonized more saints than all previous popes put together, as is sometimes also claimed, is difficult to prove, as the records of many early canonizations are incomplete, missing, or inaccurate. However, it is known that his abolition of the office of Promotor Fidei ("Promoter of the Faith") streamlined the process.
PORTUGAL - BATALHA
Batalha Monastery (Mosteiro da Batalha)
Mosteiro Santa Maria da Vitória, more commonly known as the Batalha Monastery, is a Dominican monastery in the Portuguese town of Batalha, in the District of Leiria, Portugal. It is one of the best and original examples of Late Gothic architecture in Portugal, intermingled with the Manueline style. It amazes the onlooker with its profusion of gables, spires, pinnacles and buttresses. It has become a symbol of national pride.
U S A
The POW/MIA flag is an American flag designed as a symbol of the citizens concern about the United States military personnel taken as prisoners of war and missing in action. The POW/MIA flag was created by the National League of Families and officially recognized by the United States Congress "as the symbol of our Nation's concern and commitment to resolving as fully as possible the fates of Americans still prisoner, missing and unaccounted for in Southeast Asia, thus ending the uncertainty for their families and the Nation." On March 9, 1989, an official League flag, which flew over the White House on 1988 National POW/MIA Recognition Day, was installed in the U.S. Capitol rotunda as a result of legislation passed by the 100th Congress. The League's POW/MIA flag is the only flag ever displayed in the U.S. Capitol rotunda and the only flag other than the U.S. flag to have flown over the White House.
SPAIN - CÁDIZ
CÀDIZ
Cádiz is a city and port in southwestern Spain. It is the capital of the province of the same name, a province which is one of eight comprised by the autonomous community of Andalusia. Cádiz, the oldest continuously-inhabited city in the Iberian Peninsula and possibly of all south-western Europe, has been a principal home port of the Spanish Navy since the accession of the Spanish Bourbons in the 18th century. It is also the site of the University of Cádiz. Despite its unique site, Cadiz is, in most respects, a typically Andalusian city with a wealth of attractive vistas and well-preserved historical landmarks. The older part of Cádiz, within the remnants of the city walls, is commonly referred to as the Old City (in Spanish, Casco Antiguo). It is characterized by the antiquity of its various quarters (barrios), among them El Populo, La Viña, and Santa Maria, which present a marked contrast to the newer areas of town. While the Old City's street plan consists largely of narrow winding alleys connecting large plazas, newer areas of Cádiz typically have wide avenues and more modern buildings. In addition, the city is dotted by numerous parks where exotic plants, including giant trees supposedly brought to Spain by Columbus, flourish.
FRANCE - PARIS
Île - de - France
Île-de-France ("Island of France") is one of the twenty-six administrative regions of France. Created as the "District of the Paris Region" in 1961, it was renamed as the "Île-de-France" région in 1976 when its administrative status was aligned with the other French administrative regions created in 1972. Despite the name change, Île-de-France is still popularly referred to by French people as the Région Parisienne ("Paris Region") or RP. Ninety percent of its territory is covered by the Paris aire urbaine (or "metropolitan area") which extends beyond its borders in places. With 11.6 million inhabitants Île-de-France is the most populated region of France. It has more residents than Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Greece, Portugal, Sweden or all three Baltic states together, and a comparable population to the U.S. state of Ohio and the Canadian province of Ontario. It is the fourth most populous country subdivision in the European Union after England, North Rhine-Westphalia and Bavaria. Economically, Île-de-France is one of the richest regions in the world: its total GDP was €500.8 billion in 2006 (US$629.2 billion at 2006 real exchange rates), nearly the entire GDP of the Netherlands, with a per capita GDP at €43,370 (US$54,482) the same year.
PORTUGAL - ALGARVE (typical)
PORTUGAL - ALGARVE - typical chimney
12 October 2008
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