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The Republic of Hau Pakumoto?
"Fed up with French Polynesia". Ever heard of the latest self-proclaimed Republic of Pakumotu ? In January, Moorea decided that they were "fed up with French Polynesia" and have broken away to form an independent state. While their status as an independent nation hasn't been formalised, discussions are in progress.
The group of islands in this area are called the Society Islands, the most populous of the islands in the archipelago. Moorea's neighbors include the main island of Tahiti, of course, as well as the popular Bora Bora.
If you love blue oceans and sandy beaches, then you'll want to take note at the latest 'it' destination for fun i...
Lighting Up History
If you're ever been to Northumberland and Cumbria in the north of England, you'll know what a beautiful part of the world it is. If you're lucky enough to be visiting it this Spring, stop by Hadrian's Wall on March 13th. On that night, the historic landmark that stretches 84 miles, from coast to coast, will be lit up with torches.
Hadrian's Wall was built by the Romans in AD122 on the orders of Emperor Hadrian, to mark their frontier across the north of England. In 1987 it was added to the list of UNESCO World Heritage Sites, and a public path marks the route of the wall, though the wall itself isn't always there.
The first torch will be illuminated at a public event at Segedunum Roman Fort at Wallsend in the North East. The line of light will then make its way along the Wall to Bowness-on-Solway in Cumbria over the course of the next hour, lighting up 500 points along the way.
Says Linda Tuttiett, the Chief Executive of Hadrian's Wall Heritage Ltd: 'We wanted to do something really quite extraordinary to bring t...
Magic Circle
If you look closely at the striking landscape above, you'll see a ring. This space-age structure is the new Centro de Tecnificacion Deportiva, a giant circular building created by José María Sánchez García in Guijo de Granadilla, western Spain.
From the air, it's magnificent, in its shape and setting. From the ground it looks like a series of shipping containers slotted together in a huge arc. Inside it's a research, training, recreation and business facility for sports professionals, with an information center, laboratories, accommodation and cafe. Lucky them.
The environment has dictated something of its structure. The narrow neck of land it's built on is subject to flooding - hence the stilts. Leaving...
Mexico's Vibrant Container City
When most Westerners hear the word "Cholula" they probably think of hot sauce. It is, after all, one of Mexico's finest food exports. The famous hot sauce was named after the ancient city of Cholula, which is Mexico's oldest inhabited city, the former center of the Aztec empire, and the home of the famous pyramid of Cholula - otherwise known as the great temple of Quetzalcoatl, the largest man-made pyramid in the world.
While Cholula hot sauce and Great Pyramid are reasons enough to visit Cholula, its new container city has become another, more contemporary draw for this city of many attractions. Located just one block from the city's hip Camino Real, this part of Cholula is made of about 5...
Look Up, Angelenos!
Lord knows, in the City of Angels, we're used to looking heavenward and seeing explosions of color among the palm trees. In LA, billboards are everywhere, showcasing the latest CSI spin-offs, mega-blockbusters, or jeans. But right now, someone's playing tricks on us.
Throughout March, the MAK Center for Art and Architecture at the Schindler House has taken over billboards all over town for How Many Billboards? Art in Stead. This large-scale urban exhibition is showcasing 21 works by leading contemporary artists, including Yvonne Rainer (top), Kori Newkirk (above), and James Welling (below).
'The sudden existence of artistic speech mixed in with commercial speech p...
A Deserted Hand
It's one of the highlights of the Pan-American Highway, an eerie hand reaching out of the desert, fingertips pointed at the sky. Like something out of Gulliver's Travels, La Mano del Desierto is in fact the creation of Chilean sculptor Mario Irarrázabal, built in 1992 in the Atacama Desert.
Located in the middle of nowhere, some 75km south of the city of Antofagasta, the sculpture has nevertheless become something of a tourist destination.
The hand has a base of iron and cement, and stands 11m/36ft tall, at 3608ft above sea level. Occasionally, for some inexplicable reason, it gets vandalized. Luckily, devoted preservationists clean it up again.
It's one of the several surreal hand sculptures created by Irarrazábal around the world - like Dedos in Madrid, and Monumento al Ahogado (Monument to the Drowned) in Punta del Este, Uruguay.
And it seems plenty of other artists have had s...
The Coolest Hotel You'll Probably Never Stay At
On a mountain called Paranal in Chile, there stands a telescope, a Very Large Telescope (or VLT) to be precise. It's the world's most advanced visible-light astronomical observatory, and is run by ESO, the European Southern Observatory. In order to accommodate workers in the largely inhospitable terrain of the Atacama Desert, ESO created the Paranal Residencia, also known as the ESO Hotel.
Construction of the VLT began in 1991, and for 11 years workers stayed in cramped containers at the base camp. In 1998, work started on the new residence in an existing depression in the landscape, facing the Pacific Ocean 12km below.
It was designed (in collaboration with German architects Auer and Weber Freie Architekten) to blend into the environment, so much of the residence is built beneath ground level.
Light...
Bug Dome
The Bug Dome is a fusion of nature with human nature. Built from bamboo, wood, gravel and recycled concrete on a derelict building site in Shenzhen, China, it's a work of art as well as a functional space.
The design is inspired by an insect's cocoon, as a shelter to protect 'industrial insects' (or illegal migrant workers) from the elements of 'un-nature' or 'the exploding urbanism in the heart of Shenzhen'. According to its designers, the Dome is a concession to nature - weak, flexible. It mediates between nature and human nature, growing as it does from the ruins around it.
The space was used durin...
Galactic Suite - Hotels We Like
Ever since the days of the popular television show Star Trek, outer space has been the final frontier. Man has conquered all other forms of travel, from high speed air travel to luxury ocean liners that travel around the world. But what's going on in outer space? A lot.
Richard Branson has big plans for space travel under his umbrella Virgin Galactic, and he'll have good company, as the kind folks at Galactic Suite are working hard to make sure you have somewhere to stay when you arrive.
The Galactic Suite hotel started out as a hobbyist project by its founder, aerospa...
A River Runs Through It
As a director, actor and chairman of the Sundance Film Festival, Robert Redford has never tried to hide his love for the environment. While he's made several films with stunning backdrops, none is as fitting a tribute to the natural world as A River Runs Through It, which was released in 1992. The movie is based on the novella of the same name by Norman MacLean.
Taking place in the Gallatin Mountain Range of Montana after World War I, it's the story of two brothers, played by Brad Pitt and Craig...
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