spa travel tips and stories. Vacations ideas, cruises spa and resorts

The luxurious Six Senses Spa at Porto Elounda, Crete is undoubtedly one of the most breathtaking spas in the whole of Greece. Located on a peninsular overlooking a stunning expanse of the Aegean Sea, the spa reflects traditional architecture highlighted with cutting edge trends plus some quite stunning contemporary works of art. Designed With Respect To The Architectural Tradition Of The Land. The First View From The Hilltop Is A Panorama Of The Bay Of Mirabello, Where The Foreground Is Dominated By The Porto Elounda De Luxe Resort And The Green Expanse Of Its Golf Course. An Oasis Of Recreation And Discreet Luxury Comprised Of The Hotel And The Seafront Bungalows And Villas. Location Description Spinalonga Island, Kritsa Traditional Village Monastery, Ancient City Of Olus, Byzantine Mosaic Remains.The two levels of the 23 treatment areas includes Tepidarium – the spa’s focal point providing a bravura space that excites all the senses, Junior Suite, Thalassotherapy Suites, Oriental treatment rooms, Ottoman hammam, couples treatment areas with outdoor bubble-tubs, hair salon and Cleopatra bath. There is also a Caldarium, traditional Finnish sauna, plunge pool, and a private spa area named the Spring Suite.

Continue reading Golf, Spa and The Discreet Luxury of Porto Elounda

Once the residence of Maharaja of Tehri-Garhwal, Ananda is undoubtedly one of the best hotels in India and ranked in the Top 10 spa hotels of the world. The calming integration of lush greenery, fresh mountain air, Himalayan spring water, the luxurious therapy rooms overlooking the holy River Ganges and the mystifying Himalayas, together with unbeatable spa facilities provides the ideal environment for rejuvenation of the body, mind and soul. It is, however, not only for those who want to spend time doing little but being pampered – it is also the perfect base from which to go walking, bird watching, star-gazing, rafting, fishing or game viewing.
The 21,000 square foot spa offers an extensive menu of over 79 body and beauty treatments, integrating the traditional Indian systems of Ayurveda with the more contemporary Western spa approach. The spa experience strives to achieve the ultimate harmony between the physical and the mental realms of the individual.

Continue reading Ananda in the Himalayas is One of The Top 10 Spa Hotels of The World

The Seattle Central Library is the flagship library of the Seattle Public Library system. The 11-story (185 feet or 56 meters high) glass and steel building in downtown Seattle,Washington was opened to the public on Sunday, May 23,2004. Situated on a sloping site between 4th and 5th street the new library will have entrances on both street levels. The entrance level on 4th Street, one of Seattle’s main thoroughfares, houses the Children’s Library and foreign-language resources. Rem Koolhaas is the architect.

Continue reading One of the most complex buildings, made once

Salt Lake City is the capital and the most populous city of the U.S. state of Utah. The name of the city is often shortened to Salt Lake, or its initials, S.L.C. It was originally known as Great Salt Lake City. The Salt Lake City Public Library is a system of free public libraries. There are six locations: the main library downtown, the Anderson-Foothill branch, the Chapman branch in Glendale, the Day-Riverside branch in Rose Park, the Sprague branch in Sugar House, and the Corrine & Jack Sweet branch in the Avenues.

Continue reading The New Library in Utah

The Conservatory of Flowers, built in 1878, is a gorgeous (and restored in 2003) example of the beautiful greenhouses that were constructed during the 17th, 18th, and 19th centuries to display exotic plants and flowers. This one is built in a dramatic Victorian style, and is one of the architectural highlights of the golden gate park. Golden Gate Park is over 3 miles long & 9 blocks wide, 1017 acres.

Continue reading Gardens have this tendency to remind of sex and rebirth

It’s a joyous riot of color,
abundant and flowing,
a corner of nature just barely tamed,
a paradise made to order by an Impressionist to please the eye
and provide endless motifs to paint.
Giverny is a small French village 80 km to the west of the capital city Paris, within the valley of the river Seine and the northern region of Haute-Normandie. The village is best known as the rural retreat of the Impressionist painter Claude Monet. French impressionist Claude Monet (1840–1926) developed his garden in the Parisian village of Giverny, covering his extensive grounds with brilliant flowers and profuse greenery.

Continue reading Claude Monet’s Garden in Giverny, Paris

Sydney’s terminal is a dynamic building with a remarkable clarity of organization given the complexities of program, staging and site constraints. The scale of the main entrance space and this clarity ensure that the building, while large (170 metres long, 45 metres wide and three storeys high) is not intimidating and that navigation through the space is always clear. The whole building incorporates arrivals, check-ins, valet parking, staff areas, Golden Wing Club, a link concourse, departure lounges and baggage sorting areas. Arrivals are accommodated on the ground level and check-in is located on the upper level.

Continue reading A Superb Terminal – Sydney

Madrid Barajas Airport opened in 1933 and was subsequently extended several times. By the early ‘90s, the existing airport had become over-stretched and the need for a terminal, satellite, ancillary buildings and two new runways in the north-west was identified. The client, the Spanish National Airports Authority (AENA) initiated an international competition which was won by a consortium of Richard Rogers Partnership, the Spanish practice Estudio Lamela and two engineering companies TPS and Initec in 1997. The design was chosen for it simplicity, adaptability and flexibility, allowing for future changes and extensions.
As a 21st-century airport, the New Terminal at Barajas will be efficient, simple, economic and functional, accommodating anticipated growth in passenger traffic, which could be up to 35 million per annum in 2010 and 50 million in 2020, double the capacity of the old airport.

The new NAT is located only three kilometres from the old terminals and, after public transportation links have been completed, will be only 15 minutes by underground from the city centre, enhancing Madrid’s prominence as a major cosmopolitan centre and prime transport hub. When the new Barajas Airport is fully operational, there will be a workforce of 20,000 on site each day.

The New Terminal Building should quickly adapt to economic and social changes and have the capacity to implement new technologies, whilst respecting the environment.

Continue reading Barajas Airport in Madrid

In Maryborough, Australia there is a cultural centre (4, 000 sq.m) situated on the banks o the Mary River.The multi-purpose complex houses a 900 seat production theatre, bar, foyer and ancillary performance and a rehearsal space. The Brolga Theatre aims to deliver a venue which meets the present and foying excellentuture needs of the community, accessible to all, enjoyable and memorable to visit and use and which enhances the unique character and lifestyle found in Maryborough. Within the constraints of a very limited budget the design team has sought to lift the quality of interior spaces through simple yet effective means, such as the bold use of colour and materials.

Continue reading Brolga Theatre, Maryborough !

This is a much more than just a hotel! The HPAM is a hotel made from the stuff that dreams are made of: talent, inventiveness, madness, sanity- a real dream come true. HPAM is a hotel where creativity and freedom go hand in hand- a veritable hompage to frredom. The HPAM is a hotel created with affection, with everything in it so interesting and stimulating, an authentic luxury.

Continue reading Puerta America – much more than just a hotel