The Hallgrimskirkja is a Lutheran parish church in Reykjavik, Iceland. It is located at the top of shopping street Skolavordustigur, Reykjavik. Rising 74.5 m (244 ft), Hallgrimskirkja is the tallest building in Iceland. The statue in front of the church represents Leif Eriksson, son of Erik the Red.

You can see here a part of the organ, which is composed of 5200 pipes. Between mid-June and mid-August you can hear this mighty beast in action three times per week at lunchtime/evening concerts.

It built in 1974 and structure remember a basaltic mountain. The structure in a heroic, nationalist style to replace an earlier church that was destroyed by fire.

The 18th century witnessed terrible misery among Icelanders in the wake of enormous volcanic eruptions, resulting in drastic climate changes and destruction of grazing fields.

The Church of Our Lady of the Pillar is near the River Ebro in the province of Zaragoza, west of Barcelona on the coast of Spain. It is reputed to be the first Church dedicated to Mary in history. The location is considered the birthplace of Christianity in Spain and has been the destination of pilgrims for hundreds of years.

The architecture is of baroque style, and the present building was predominantly built between 1681 and 1872. Zaragoza is some Islamic architectural influence which means there are more mosaics and more colors.

The statue and pillar have been preserved however for almost 2000 years. Numerous healings throughout the ages have been attributed to the Virgin by those visiting the site seeking her help.

According to legend, the Virgin Mary appeared miraculously to Saint James the Great in the 1st century, standing on a pillar.This legend is commemorated by a famous Catholic basilica called Nuestra Señora del Pilar (”Our Lady of the Pillar”). Her feast day is also celebrated every 12th of October.
For centuries, rivers of pilgrims have continued to visit the Shrine of Saragossa.

Abu Darwish Mosque is one of the nice mosques of Amman, Jordan. It was built in 1961 on top of Jebel al-Ashrafiyeh. With unmistakable alternating layers of black and white stone, inside it can pray more than 7000 people. Non-Muslims are generally not permitted inside, but the views on the way up are good. Inside the mosque there is a small Islamic Museum.

BMW Central Building in Leipzig, Germany, was built between 2001 and 2006. Designed by Zaha Hadid, the building already received several awards: Deutsche Architekturpreis 2005, Leipziger Architekturpreis 2005, Deutsche Architekturpreis Beton 2005, Best-Office-Award 2006 and a special award at Italian Premio Internazionale Dedalo Minosse architecture event. The exterior is not as interesting as its interiors. Among the signature elements are the 600 m long galleries where body-in-whites are transported to and from the paint shop. There a car production line passes over multilevel floor plates with platforms that function as open office spaces.

Noorderlicht is an old dock place, used by 250 artists working in the fields of theater, film, media, architecture and design. The place is both cafe & restaurant and also a little getaway from the city. Especially when the weather is holding up, it’s a perfect way to spend a late afternoon contemplating your day in Amsterdam on the terrace overlooking the IJ and part of the city center.

The staff is very informal, laid back and friendly, but not particularly speedy when it’s busy. The food is always fresh, healthy and delicious. The menu changes with the seasons and offers a variety of prices, so you can decide if you want to stay on a budget or splurge a little. The desserts are to die for, especially the plum tarte tatin and hangop pudding with rhubarb sauce.

Getting there: An absolute must! From the new Aanmeersteiger behind Central Station, where the big ferry to Amsterdam Noord-establishes, leaves a NDSM ferry to the wharf. Hence it is five minutes walk to Northern Lights. Over 50 more after arriving straight and then turn right at the NDSM. Walk 300 meter straight to the sheds on your left. At the end you see right to a transparent dome ‘t IJ. Just make sure you don’t miss the last ferry back to civilization. Ferries operate daily at 12:00 till 22:00.

The Kirche St. Leopold is an extraordinary monument, which sits high atop the Baumgartner Hohe at the city outskirts. Locals people jokingly say to this splendid site as ‘Mount Lemon‘, because of the church’s shining gilded dome that beckons from afar. This new masterpiece was built by architect Otto Wagner from 1903–07 on the grounds of Vienna’s Steinhof psychiatric hospital. Planned for the use of patients, many of the church’s salient design features fascinatingly address the special concern for hygiene prevalent at the time.

The church interior was entirely cloth in tiles to allow for easy cleaning; the pews were given rounded edges to minimize injuries; and holy water dispensed by a drip rather than the traditional stoup, for fear of infection.

The ornamentation of the Kirche St Leopold encapsulates the quintessential spirit of the Jugendstil, while Otto Wagner’s open floor plan foreshadows the onset of modernism. You will never miss the beautiful stained glass windows and mosaics by artist Koloman Moser, one of the founders of the Vienna Secession.

The Cathedral of Basil the Blessed, is a Russian Orthodox cathedral erected on the Red Square in Moscow in 1555–1561. The Monument to Minin and Pozharsky is made of bronze. Not particularly large, it consists of nine chapels, built on a single foundation. According to legend, however, it was built by an Italian architect who was blinded so that he could never create anything that was similar or equal. The St. Basil’s Cathedral, along with the Red Square were inscribed by Unesco as World Heritage Sites in 1990!

The Cathedral was commissioned by Ivan the Terrible in the 16th century to commemorate a military victory.Victory came on the feast day of the Intercession of the Virgin, so the Tsar chose to name his new church the Cathedral of the Intercession of the Virgin on the Moat, after the moat that ran beside the Kremlin.

St. Basil’s original construction involved a total of nine pillars or churches, replacing the former wooden churches, situated on a single foundation. A tenth pillar was added (1588) after the death of St. Basil and stands over his burial site.

The inside of St. Basil’s is a maze of narrow, dimly lit corridors connecting the different chapels. Each of the painted domes differs in design and colour.

Surrounded by 7 mountains, Bergen is an attractive town on the west coast of Norway. It is the ideal starting point for fjord tours and fjord cruises. The world famous waterfront – Bryggen with its unique architecture is listed by UNESCO as one of the world’s most significant examples of the history and culture of a medieval settlement. Today, Bryggen is a fascinating place of active workshops. Many of the remaining 58 buildings are now used as artists’ studios where painters, weavers and craftsmen produce fine-quality, original items.

If you’ve strolled in the sunny Barcelona you will came across magnificent modernist buildings gaze proudly over the tree-lined boulevards, sleek furniture, elaborate tapas, chic couture and handmade chocolates. Hidden from view, there are gardens and courtyards that offers shelter from the urban rush and an intimate view of everyday Barcelona life.

Most of the gardens have been carved in recent years from the patios that form the center of each city block, and are reached down narrow passageways or by cutting through a building. They are the ideal place to relax between the sights of the Eixample, which stretches from the old city to neighborhoods like Gracia.

The picture displays the swimming pool at Calle Roger de Lluria by a water tower. This is one of the first patios returned to the public by the city in the late 1980s and home to a looming brick water tower. “The patios are like a window onto Barcelona,” said Francesc Munoz Ramirez. He also mentioned that, ”You can be an urban voyeur — watch the business of the city from the inside.”

An enormous list of Barcelona’s often-overlooked public gardens — like the serene grounds of the Barcelona Seminary or the courtyard of the Casa Elizalde cultural center, where you can often catch a weekend children’s show — can be found on the Web site of ProEixample (www.proeixample.cat), a public-private partnership dedicated to revitalizing the Eixample. Photos by: Stefano Buonamici

Of the hundreds of churches on the island of Montreal, Notre-Dame’s interior is the most stunning with a exquisite detail. This 19th Century Basilica is in the historic district of Montreal, in Quebec, Canada. Basilica was opened in 1829, making it the largest religious edifice in North America at the time. It is a very beautiful, interesting and cultural attraction!
According to records, it took two years to erect the walls of the basilica and the facade up to the base of the towers. Much of the interior is carved from rare woods – which are gilded or painted and large rose windows. It is filled with hundreds of intricate wooden carvings and several religious statues. The eastern tower of the Notre- Dame Montreal holds a ten-bell carillon, while the western tower, named Temperance, holds a single bell, the Jean-Baptiste bell. This ten ton bell is only rung on special occasions and can be heard 25km away. There’s also a chapel in the back which is just as amazing.
The original church, designed by Father François Dollier de Casson sufficed for the first 150 years. Then a New York architect named James O’Donnell was brought to Montreal to build a new church.
This striking interior is the work of architect Victor Bourgeau, who transformed the originally stern interior into the current design between 1874 and 1880. The great organ is a Casavant and the recitals held in the church throughout the year are very popular. The basilica offers musical programming of choral and organ performances.

Hotel de Larache is cobbled together from 20 small farming plots, drawing inspiration from the traditional estancias of northern Chile. Set in the oasis of San Pedro within the Atacama Desert, it offers guests the opportunity to explore the region’s unique landscape. 105 km from Calama in the Atacama Desert. This hotel, very shortly after its opening was chosen amongst the 100 best hotels in the world!

Hotel de Larache has 52 luxury spacious rooms with Jacuzzi, sitting rooms and ample natural light with wood and tile accents and plush linens. Far superior in style, these airy rooms afford about 50% more space.

Hotel Amenities: Outdoor pool and sauna, Massage services, Dining room with exquisite cuisine, Private stables, Gift shop, Library with books and maps, Laundry, Internet facilities. Meeting room for 70 persons.

Open Bar. Including alcoholic drinks and a wide selection of wines. 

Every day different excursions are offered: by bike, on foot, on horseback or in a group of max. There are few places on earth, where a dream of luxury and adventure will come true!

Christiania Freetown was established in 1971 by  under the ownership of the freethinking individuals who reclaimed the land for public use in 1986. Today the  self governing community has a population of roughly 900 inhabitants, with visitors arriving daily to bear witness and explore within this ongoing social experiment.

Until 2004, one of the main attractions in Christiania was a series of hash stands on the main thoroughfare, aptly named Pusher Street. While hard drugs have always been banned by community law, the hash trade was very much at home in Chritiania, until the Danish government finally cracked down and the community was forced to refocus its business ventures. Today, a series of small businesses including shops, cafes and restaurants lure visitors to contribute to the local economy.

Christianians has  defended themselves through peaceful means and remains autonomous. Cars are banned from use within the community borders, where community members reside in abodes as typical as houses and as non-traditional as tree-houses. Chritiania is certainly an important destination for dreamers, explorers and hippies.

Christiania is located within the parameters of Copenhagen’s city bike network, we recommend you hop on one of those free access bikes and cross the river to check out a truly one-of-a-kind community.

Las Lajas Cathedral, built in 1916, is located in remote southwest Colombia, deep down in a gorge of the Guaitara River. An example of Gothic revival architecture, the cathedral is memorably framed by stark mountains and 100 feet waterfalls. The name Laja comes from the name of a type of flat sedimentary rock similar to floor tiles found in the Andes Mountains.

The church was built to commemorate the appearance of the Virgin which legend has it, her image appeared on an enormous vertical rock 45m above the river. Apparently, an image of Virgin of Las Lajas was painted on the side of the cliff. As a result, the altar is located here and the rest of the church is built jutting outwards  from the cliff.

The story of the cathedral’s creation is that in 1754 an Amerindian named “Maria Mueces” and deaf-mute daughter “Rosa” were caught up by a very strong storm. They found refuge between the gigantic Lajas.

This image was imprinted on the rocks of a gorge above the Guaitara River. The image is situated inside a cave very high in the mountains, and was completely unknown until it was discovered in the mid-18th century by an Indian.

This installation is created by the american artist Jeffrey Inaba, in collaboration with Luca Peralta Studio, Rome, Italy, at Rome’s Policlinico Umberto I, the most important hospital in the Italian capital and one of the largest in Europe. 

The structure is focused on the waiting and transit areas, used every day by large numbers of people. Within the delicate and complex social context that a hospital represents, the artist offers different kinds of space where patients, passers-by, visitors and doctors can enjoy moments of relaxation.

Colors, lights, geometric shapes and various environmentally friendly elements give the hospital a new, dynamic energy. Through art, waiting becomes potential energy, transmitting positivity and bringing an element of comfort to an architectural space normally seen as a temporary and highly emotional environment.  The solar PV system generates more than the energy needed for the electricity to run the lights and the monitors and DVD player inside the sphere.

A mixture of colorful gateway into Paris’ ancient and arty Marais, the Pompidou stands out among the crowd; Renzo Piano and Richer Rogers’ winning design exposes, literally, the guts of the museum cultural center for all to see. Lovingly referred to as “Beaubourg” by many Parisians and the “gerbil cage” or “cruise liner” by foreign visitors, the Pompidou testifies to France’s surprising sense of architectural adventure, and bien sûr the lasting personal marks of its presidents.

The museum’s collection contains over 50,000 works from across the 20th century—only a fraction of those are exhibited at the huge gallery. Start your journey with contemporary art on the fourth floor and work your way up—and back in time—through Ono, Klein, Calder, Dufy, and Picasso. Canonize your visit with a new classic: une coupe de champagne on the sixth floor terrace café, aptly dubbed, Georges.