A view of Porto, Portugal by Sunny Ripert

The entire province that Porto is located in is an important commercial center for the country. Today you will find many fine buildings that span the centuries and include cathedrals, churches, mansions and so much more. Nearby, along the river Tâmega, you will find some of the finest mansions in the country, many of which can be dated back to the 17th century and beyond.

Along the banks of the Douro River, you can find the Caves do Vinho do Porto. There are several wine cellars which house more than 50 different types of wine. You can take guided tours throughout the cellars and even have the opportunity to taste some of the finest wines.

Many people chose to stop by and check out the 13th century Sé Catedral which houses many finer artifacts from across the centuries. Then there is the nearby Torre dos Clérigos which is a bell tower that was completed in 1763 and features 225 steps to the viewing level. The 19th century Palácio da Bolsa was the former home of the nation’s Stock Exchange but today stands as a beautiful example of some of the finest workmanship of the era.

There are many great locations throughout the region to experience the culture and history of Portugal. There is the Museu de Serralves which is a contemporary art museum that showcases an amazing collection of art from some of the best Portuguese artists of recent times. The Museu Municipal Abade Pedrosa is a museum dedicated to the medieval times and has a number of important artifacts from the era.

Porto Cathedral, Portugal by Gabriele Margapoti

You may also want to check out the Antiga Cadeia da Relação prison which is now home to the Portuguese Centre for Photography. The Edifício do Instituto do Vinho do Porto is the institute responsible for ensuring the quality of Douro wines.

For some rest and relaxation, you can stop by and visit the Jardim de São Lázaro gardens which were developed back in 1834 or the Jardim do Passeio Alegre gardens which date back to 1870. For the ultimate treat though, spend a day at the Termas de São Vicente hot springs where you can get that much needed rest and relaxation you have been searching for.

Just do not forget that you cannot leave Porto without visiting the Citânia de Sanfins ruins. This 15 hectare archaeological site is the location of some of the most important findings on the entire Iberian Peninsula. You will see ruins from both the Neolithic as well as the Palaeolithic Eras. There are roads and buildings as well as baths that can be dated back several thousand years.

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Faro was originally just a fishing village built by the Romans, who called it Ossonoba. In 1249, thanks to Alfonso III. was freed from the power of the Moors and became to prosper as a city. But in 1596 a city suffered a damaging blow, it was burned by the Earl of Essex, who was a great favorite of Queen Elizabeth I. And later, in 1755, it was damaged again during the massive earthquake. Although the remnants of ancient city walls managed to preserve until today, most of the beautiful buildings either did not outlast the destruction or have been largely damaged. So the buildings that you can see today in Faro, come mainly from the late 18th and 19th century.

Faro is now a beautiful coastal city protected by a low sandy islands Ilha de Culatra, Ilha da Barreta and Ilha da Faro. Unfortunately, many tourists pass Faro without stopping here, even though it has the largest number of cultural and historical monuments from all the towns in the Algarve region. Preserved old town center around the cathedral and behind the old city walls, definitely worth a visit.

The historical center of Faro can easily be explored on foot. It lies in a small bay and is partly surrounded by medieval walls. The old harbor area has arched entrance gate with a bell tower called Arco da Vila. This arch was built in the 19th century for Bishop Dom Francisco Gomes do Avelar, who has decided to rebuild the dilapidated city. Street behind it, paved with cobblestones, leads to a beautiful Largo da Sé Square, where you can see the cathedral. From the original Gothic cathedral from the 13th century, which was destroyed in 1596 by English forces led by the Earl of Essex, are preserved only unusual tower, covered porches and two inner chapels. The reconstruction of the cathedral took a long time, so it is now built both in Renaissance, and Baroque style.

Inside the cathedral you can see a huge pipe organ decorated with spectacular Chinese motifs. During festive occasions, there are playing Europe’s leading organists. The cathedral also houses one of the most important Algarve’s collections of sacred art from the 17th and 18th century. And its tower offers a beautiful view of the city.

On the square Largo da Sé is also a Bishop’s Palace Paço Episcopal. If you go through another stone arch in Arco Repouso, walk up to the church of São Francisco, which was built in the 18th century. It is decorated with tiles and scenes from the life of St. Francis. Further north, another church rises in Pé Nossa Senhora da Cruz, who is an exceptional oil paintings depicting episodes from Genesis.

In the monastery Convento de Nossa Senhora da Assunção (Monastery of Our Lady of the Assumption), which is the oldest Renaissance building in the Algarve, is probably the most beautiful cloister in southern Portugal, which was built in 1540 by Afonso Pires. The monastery was founded by Leonor, sister of Manuel I (king of Portugal). The monastery has been carefully restored and since 1973 houses a museum devoted to archeology where you can see the local archaeological finds. The collection includes also Roman, medieval and Manueline stone reliefs and sculptures. The main exhibit is a 2,000 year old Roman mosaic floor measuring 9 x 3 meters, showing a head of the god Neptune.

The most interesting church in Faro is Igreja do Carmo (Carmelite Church). It has an imposing facade with two towers and a beautiful gilded interior, but its biggest attraction is haunted Bone Chapel. Besides the Carmelite church from the 18th century is located another museum – Museo Marítimo exhibiting a small collection of marine exhibits, including model ships. You will see a flagship example of Vasco de Gama, which he used during his voyage to India. Plus you can learn here about the traditional methods of fishing on the coast of the Algarve.

The main artery of Faro is the elegant pedestrian street Rua de Santo António, which is full of shops, bars and restaurants. On the northeast of the city lies the Jewish cemetery, founded for the community, which was brought here by Marquis de Pombal in the 18th century.

About 7 kilometers from the town is a beach. The local coastline is attractive because it includes a number of small sandy islands with a unique nature reserve. In the vicinity of the bay is the Ria Formosa Natural Park, which is a favorite resting place for many species of migratory birds.

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Photo licensed under the Creative Commons, created by isamiga76

The historic center of Charleroi is divided into Upper and Lower Town. The center of the Upper Town is formed by the square of Charles II., where you can see the most important monument of Charleroi. That is the Town Hall and the Bell tower called Belfry of Charleroi, which is together with other fifty-five Belgian and Northern France Belfries inscribed on a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1999. Very interesting is also St. Christopher Basilica standing at the opposite side.

Lower City is situated around the square of Albert I., which is the commercial center of Charleroi. The city is also known for a number of interesting museums, which you can not miss on your visit. Head to the Museum of Glass, Museum of Photography and the Archaeological Museum. Museum of Fine Arts and Jules Destré Museum are waiting for you in the building of Town Hall, dating from the 30′s of the 20th century.

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Leaning Tower of Pisa was built as a freestanding bell tower of the Pisa Cathedral. However in the beginning, the tower stood uprightly like the majority of bell towers. But because of carelessly made ​​bases and soft soil it started to lean. Leaning Tower of Pisa is one of the few cases where thanks to poor work it became popular throughout the world.

The building is approximately 55.9 meters high on the lower side and 56.7 meters on that higher one. To its top you can get by 294 stairs. Construction of the tower began in 1173 and lasted almost 200 years since it was interrupted several times due to the wars with its neighbours (Genoa, Lucca and Florence). Its top with the bells was finished in 1372. However at that time the tower was already inclined, actually since the completion of the first three floors in 1178.

Because the tilt of the tower was constantly increasing and threatening its collapse, the tower was closed to the public in 1990 and rescue works started. In 2001 the tower was finally reopened with the statement that it should be stable at least for the following 300 years.

Although the Leaning tower is the most famous attraction in Pisa, it is not the only one. It stands in a place called Campo dei Miracoli or “Field of Miracles”. We can find here other wonderful architectural gems, such as Duomo, the Baptistery, or monumental cemetery Campo Santo. All the buildings are really beautiful, but in fact, they still attract far less attention than the famous tower.

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One of the most beautiful buildings in Dunkerque is certainly the local town hall dating from the early 20th century. Amongst others, we can notice the facade of the hero image of Jean Bart and his crew. Hall is registered as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Equally beautiful is the Gothic church of Saint-Eloi. During the Second World War was almost completely destroyed, retained only the front wall. Reconstruction took place at the beginning of this millennium, as a reminder of the horrors of war were left craters in the facade of bullet holes. Church of Saint-Eloi was originally connected with a bell tower, in the late 19th century, these buildings were separated. Now, there is a busy street between them. Even the bell tower is part of UNESCO.

Near the port of Dunkerque is Leughenaer tower, which was originally part of the fortifications. Interesting is also the chapel of Notre Dame des Dunes.

In the port we can visit the Maritime Museum, just opposite is a beautiful ship Duchesse Anne, which is also a popular destination for visitors.

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Pisa, Tuscany, Italy / Photo by admin

There are many famous universities and other institutes of higher learning located in Pisa. The 12th century University of Pisa is the most famous of the institutes in the city. However, you can also find the Sant’Anna School of Advanced Studies and the Napoleonic Scuola Normale Superiore di Pisa in the Italian city of Pisa.

The city dates back to the days of the Greek Empire. There have been a number of artefacts uncovered over the years which have confirmed this. The most important of these is the discovery of an Etruscan necropolis back in 1991. This means that Pisa can be easily dated back to the 5th century B.C.

Pisa was known as an important port city for the Roman Empire. Known back in 89 B.C. as Portus Pisanus, the city played an important role in the Roman naval battles against the Carthaginians, Gauls and Ligurians. Pisa would continue to be a prosperous city and home to the Italian Naval fleets until 1284 when the Genoese fleet defeated Albertino Morosini at the Battle of Meloria.

The famous 67 meter tall leaning tower of Pisa took an amazing 344 years to build. The construction of the tower began in 1173 and by the time that the second floor was added in 1178, the tower began to sink as a result of the small foundation.

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