Photo licensed under the Creative Commons, created by Leandro Neumann Ciuffo

The main feature of the town is Acireale Cathedral. It dates from the 16th and 17th century, however it was rebuilt in the 18th century. The facade is from the 17th century, which is the work of Giambattista Basile and has a beautiful portal of marble and alabaster (17th century). The majestic interior has a dome and is richly decorated with frescoes (created in the 18th century).

The city’s heart is a Piazza del Duomo, where this cathedral is situated. There is also the Palazzo Comunale, which is building from the second half of the 17th century built in a typical Catalonian Baroque style. There is also a Basilica dei Santi Pietro e Paolo from the 17th century. It boasts a beautiful architectural design with ornamental decoration.

You should visit also the public gardens and Villa Belvedere. Here you can enjoy really a beautiful panoramic view of Mount Etna and the sea. You can then take a pleasant walk through beautiful scenery and exciting surroundings, along the steep slopes of The natural reserve La Timpa and get to a picturesque fishing village – Santa Maria la Scala.

Photo licensed under the Creative Commons, created by Leandro Neumann Ciuffo

Acireale is also known for a famous Carnival, which attracts people from around the world. It is considered the most beautiful carnival in Sicily. For 2012 it is planned from the 4th to 21st of February.

The city has two patrons – St. Venera (celebrated on the 26th of July) and St. Sebastian (celebrated on the 20th of January).

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Photo licensed under the Creative Commons, created by Sebastian Bergmann

The church was built on the site, where according to legend, was St. Peter sentenced to death, 400 years before. At that time, the Emperor Nero, persecuted all Christians. The people started to build a church originally only as a place where they could store “Vincoli” – the chains that St. Peter was bound with in Jerusalem.

But much more attractive relics in the church is a monumental statue of Moses situated at the end of the right side of the aisle. Michelangelo was supposed to create a total of 42 sculptures for the tomb of Pope Claire II., but finally only one statue was completed. The pope gave Michelangelo also another work in the Sistine Chapel, so he didn’t have much time to complete his tomb. After his death, no one had an interest in wasting money for the celebration, so Michelangelo decided to create at least the first sculpture as a powerful and soulful figure of Moses. And this is how one of Michelangelo’s greatest masterpieces grew up.

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Basilica San Pietro in Vincoli is located in the centre of Rome, just few steps from Colosseum. Walk up the hill towards the park and you are there. However this church is not in every city guide, you certainly should not miss this great piece of art. If you will be stressed from all those crowds, this is the best place you can relax.

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Photo licensed under the Creative Commons, created by Gilles Messian

Château de Chenonceau, in comparison to the other castles of the Loire, has a very calm and majestic appearance. It may be surprising that the castle is the work of women (was built and reconstructed according to the wishes of several noble women), therefore the castle is also known as the “Château des Dames” (Castle of women). For example, Catherine de Medici added amazing yew maze and a rose garden. Madame Dupin changed the castle to ​​a center of fashion in the 18th century.

Château de Chenonceau is standing on the site of the former water mill. It has been built between the years of 1513 and 1521. The current form of the castle dates back to the 16th century. In the years of 1556 – 1559 its typical bridge arches were added to the castle and connected the banks of the river.

In the castle you can admire the beautiful tapestries, magnificent paintings and original tile floors. No wonder that after Versailles it is the second most visited castle in France.

Photo licensed under the Creative Commons, created by Gilles Messian

The castle is open to the public, and features the magnificent interiors and beautiful gardens. There are even restaurants and galleries. It is also home to various regular exhibitions and concerts. Before visiting the Château de Chenonceau you can download audio guide of the castle from the official website of Château de Chenonceau.

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The church was founded in 1099 over the alleged tomb of Emperor Nero. This place was chosen in order to sanctify this place which was defiled by the pagan tyrant. For many years, allegedly haunted spirit of the emperor in the form of ravens.

Its recent appearance the church finally received during reconstruction works in the 16th and 17th century, which involved architects Bramante and Bernini. The church has elements from the Renaissance and Baroque periods. The interior is decorated with the works of prominent artists of this time – Caravaggio, Raphael and many others.

Inside there are chapels of many well-known families. The most precious treasure within the church is the Capella Chigi of 1513, which was ordered at Raphael by banker of Siena Agostino Chigi. Its interior is decorated by altar painting “Birth of the Virgin Mary” by Sebastian del Piombo, and sculptures by Bernini and Lorenzetti.

Santa Maria di Montesanto and Santa Maria dei Miracoli (photo by admin)

You can see also other masterpieces here such as paintings by Caravaggio, frescoes by Pinturicchio located behind the main altar or two tombs by Andrea da Sansovino in the presbytery.

In the church of Santa Maria del Popolo are hidden additional beautiful chapels, for example the Cappella della Rovere or Cappella Ceraso with the paintings by Caravaggio. Stained glass windows in the church are one of the oldest in Rome.

Porta del Popolo (photo by admin)

Piazza del Popolo was designed by Valadier at the beginning of the 9th century and today is considered one of the best urbanistic solutions in the city. In the middle of this great area is the second largest Roman obelisk, brought here by the emperor Augustus and placed at the local fountain. In addition to the church of Santa Maria del Popolo, there are two other churches at the square – Santa Maria di Montesanto and Santa Maria dei Miracoli. Another characteristic feature of this large square is the Porta del Popolo, which used to be the most important approach to Rome.

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Photo licensed under the Creative Commons, created by Tom Anderson

Five naves cathedral rises to a height of 36 meters and there are also 45 side chapels. Most important element in the interior is incredible golden altar Capilla Mayor containing the biggest altarpiece in the world. At its 220 m2 containing more than 1000 figures depicting the biblical history worked 26 artists.

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Its middle part was completed in 1521, side parts in the years 1550 to 1564. The altar consists of 45 paintings of the life of Christ and the Virgin Mary and is accompanied by paintings of the major Saints of Seville. Capilla Real (Royal Chapel) was built at the north-east corner in the years 1551 to 1575. There are tombs of prominent ruling figures of Seville like Alfonso X (King of Castile, León and Galicia) and his mother Beatrice of Swabia and Holy Roman Emperor Charles V and his mother. There is also a symbolic tomb of Christopher Columbus from Melide Arthur, which was moved here in 1899 from Havana. Patio de los Naranjos is the only paradise garden of the cathedral. In the middle of which you can find a fountain from Visigothic cathedral.

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Photo licensed under the Creative Commons, created by Horia Varlan

A curious thing is that the cruel ruler Vlad III. Dracula, who was called Vlad the Impaler due to his horrific methods of torture and murders, in fact, never visited this historic castle. In spite of this fact, this place is now very popular among tourists and there are a large number of them.

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Bran Castle is located approximately 30 kilometers from the city of Brasov, right in the middle of Romania. Once you decide to visit the castle, you definitely should reserve some additional time and explore the surrounding countryside as well. Transylvania is a fascinating part of Romania, where you can still enjoy almost untouched wilderness.

But do not go there if you have a fear of vampires.

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Photo licensed under the Creative Commons, created by manuelfloresv

Other historical treasures include local Malaga Cathedral of the first half of the 16th century, which combines several artistic styles. You can walk through Paseo Marítimo seaside promenade, but there are also several pedestrian zones criss-crossing the center. You certainly should not miss a tour of the Picasso Museum, housed in a Palacio de Buenavista palace. Establishment of this museum was made thanks to the wife and grandson of painter, Christine and Bernard Ruiz-Picasso, who donated a large portion of images. Currently you can see there more than 200 works, including the paintings, drawings, sculptures or engravings.

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The museum was inaugurated March 27, 2003 with the participation of the Spanish royal family. Besides the permanent exhibition of works by Picasso are also temporary exhibitions.

Roman amphitheatre is one of the oldest monuments in Malaga. It is situated at the foot of the Alcazaba fortress. It dates from the 2nd century after Christ, from the reign of Emperor Augustus. It was discovered only in 1951, during completion of one of the gardens.

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One of the best preserved and maintained monuments is a fortress Talao (Torre Talao). It offers a great view of miles of beaches and cliffs.

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In the historical center of town you can see a Norman castle from 11th century, monastery, ruins of Judas tower, Palazzo dei Principi from 13th century, Church of San Nicola in Plateis from the 8th century, Palazzetto Normanno from 12th century, a former prison Cimalonga tower from 15th century and many more.

You can see here a lot of exotic plants. For example, cedar. The whole region was named right after this slow-growing tree as Cedar Riviera. The tree grows up to a height of 40 to 60 meters with a trunk diameter of 80-200 centimetres.

If you don’t find something you are looking for right in Scalea, then go to the neighboring national park – Parco Nazionale del Pollino. Here you can see another amount of plants as well as protected animals, caves and several gorges, such as Argentino River Valley, the gap in Lao or Romito cave with the pre-historic graffiti.

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Colosseum / Photo by admin

Colosseum dates back to 1st century AD. Specifically, its construction began sometimes after the year 70 during the reign of Emperor Vespasian and was completed in the year 80. Its further modifications followed at the end of the 1st century during Domitian rule.

Colosseum is monumental even today, can you imagine how monumental it was in those ancient times? The building, designed mainly for gladiatorial contests and various public performances, was the largest building ever built in the Roman empire. Colosseum could houses about 50 thousand people (according to the recent estimation but up to 87 thousand people according to an old document), which is astronomic number even today. Its length is 189 meters, the width 156 meters and height 48 meters, and covers an area of ​​6 acres. Unfortunately the building has not been preserved in full, but was destroyed by numerous earthquakes and other impacts. The current outer wall of the Colosseum was originally inside the walls, the original exterior one was 545 meters long.

But now let me return back to the name of the building. At the beginning it was known as Amphitheatrum Flavium (according to the emperors names – Titus Flavius ​​Vespasian and Titus Flavius ​​Domitian). And this name survived for hundreds of years.

Colosseum was used for almost 500 years for its intended purpose, until the 6th century (so more than 100 years after the collapse of Roman Empire). In the Middle Ages it served to various other purposes.

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And how Colosseum came to its current name? Not far from it was a huge statue of the emperor Nero. Emperor’s followers variously rebuilt the statue into a god Helios, or they replaced his head with their own heads. Anyway, this statue was called “Colossus.” During the history, however, the statue disappeared and was eventually forgotten, now it just contains remnants of the base. But around the year 1000, for yet unknown reason, its name began to use for Amphitheatrum Flavium, whose original name was later forgotten as well.

However you call it, this is a remarkable work of ancient builders. It is estimated that its creation consumed more than 100,000 cubic meters of travertine and 300 tons of iron clamps (on Colosseum we can observe the decline of architectural skills – older civilizations were able to create even larger structures, but often held and still hold together without using ferrous fasteners). The amphitheater had a smart system of underground tunnels leading right under the arena (the hypogeum), which is now exposed and accessible to all the visitors. There were also other corridors leading in and out of the construction, or through other parts of Colosseum. It has even the elevators and hydraulically powered equipment. The amphitheater included also some other auxiliary buildings.

Colosseum is currently one of the most visited and most admired monuments not only in Rome but throughout Italy. Colosseum is certainly a symbol of the city but sometimes even a symbol of Italy.

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The old castle was built on the place of today’s castle in Pierrefonds already in the 12th century. This great military strength has undergone a number of refurbishment over the centuries as well as its owner changed frequently. In March 1617, during the troubled reign of King Louis XIII, the castle was conquered by troops of the Chief minister Cardinal Richelieu. He decided to demolish a castle. However thanks to a huge range of construction, the work of destruction was not completed. The roofs have been destroyed and the walls were devastated by the canons.

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Pierrefonds Castle then remained as a ruin for the next two centuries. Napoleon I bought the wreck in 1810 for just 3,000 francs. In the 19th century began a period of fashion traditions of medieval knights. The ruins of Pierrefonds Castle were captured between 1834 and 1866 by the French painter Corot in his paintings.

The future French emperor Napoleon III visited the castle in 1850. Later, as emperor, asked the architect Viollet-le-Duc in 1857 to carry out reconstruction of the castle. The project grew and later they wanted to build a royal residence here. Viollet-le-Duc built it much under the influence of his ideas about the Middle Ages. The fort was changed to the castle. Yet as a builder proved very good knowledge of military fortifications of 14th century.

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