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Brodick Castle – one of the oldest Scottish fortresses | United Kingdom

Claire — Tue, 04 Oct 2011 08:57:33 +0000

Scottish Castle Brodick is located on the island of Arran and is one of the oldest Scottish fortresses. Its history dates back to Viking times when the castle served as a defense against their attacks. Fort was built by the English Duke of Hamilton, and over the centuries, has been rebuilt into a castle. In 1957, the last heir of Hamilton’s gave up Brodick Castle and such the seat opened to the public.

In addition to the large art collection, the castle is interesting also for the world-famous collection of rhododendrons. It is just at the sea and includes wonderful gardens with a great view of surrounding hills and majestic mountain of Goatfell.

Photo licensed under the Creative Commons, created by Saskia Heijltjes

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Palace of Versailles – one of the most famous monuments in Europe | France

Claire — Mon, 03 Oct 2011 11:47:53 +0000

One of the most famous monuments on the European continent is also the French Palace of Versailles (Château de Versailles), which was built in the 17th century by King Louis XIII as a hunting lodge. Soon after that the entire French elite began to come here for the lavish hunting. A major reconstruction of the castle was done during the reign of his successor, Louis XIV, also known as the Sun King. He changed the palace to more luxurious one to become a great seat of the royal court.

Photo licensed under the Creative Commons, created by David Baron

Palace of Versailles is also an important symbol of the Great French Revolution, when in 1789 the nobility was expelled from there to Paris, and executed by the guillotine.

Beautiful castle is admired mainly for its unique architecture and large surrounding gardens, which are really amazing. Many rulers in other European countries later attempted to imitate the construction of their residences just according to this French chateau; for example, Viennese palace Schönbrun.

During an excursion in the Château de Versailles you definitely do not miss the spectacular tour of the royal apartments and beautifully decorated chapel. The complex has really got a lot of rooms, wings and associated buildings, so if you want to see everything it takes you almost all day.

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Very interesting is a unique Hall of Mirrors, but you should visit also the Museum of History, which shows you all the important events that are associated with this place. I have to say that they are terribly much.

In the gardens you can find many fountains and statues. The best time to visit the gardens is in the summer during the summer musical and water festival Les Grandes Eaux Musicales, when the fountains are turned on and chamber music bands play in the gardens.

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Tropical greenhouse Fata Morgana – unique rainforest in Europe | Czech Republic

Claire — Wed, 20 Jul 2011 21:52:42 +0000

Thanks to the Tropical greenhouse Fata Morgana you can walk through the rainforests of Africa, Madagascar, Philippines, South America and others within one day! You don’t need any anti-malaria tablets or special vaccinations, nor travel far away. It is located right in the heart of Europe – in Prague, Czech Republic.

The interior of the greenhouse is divided into three separated parts with different temperature and humidity. The visitors can see the vegetation of the tropical and partly subtropical regions. Plants are arranged to evoke the idea of natural plant communities. Unlike in other greenhouses there are numerous species of plants that are very common in the tropical areas and apparently have little significance. However an overall collection of these species is very valuable.

Visitors at first see the dry Australian bush and rare flora from the island of Madagascar. Then walk through xerophilic vegetation of southern Mexico and some areas of Africa, among which the most popular are Namaqualand and Little Karoo. The middle and largest part of the greenhouse is humid lowland rain forest. It is connected to other parts by an underground tunnel which is built between two large freshwater aquariums. Here you can see a number of tropical fish and other animals.

The biggest part consists of tropical plants of South America, and selected locations of Central America. Other parts are reserved for flora of Australia and Oceania, Africa and Madagascar, Vietnam, Sunda Islands and the Philippines. Visitors can watch the life in tropical lakes, or may rest for a moment on the panoramic terrace listening to a nearby waterfall. The last part is cold and evoke the life in the high mountains. There are plants from American Andes. The central part of the exhibition is devoted to rare vegetation of table mountains in Venezuela.

Trip to tropical nature is not only a dream, any more. Walk across exotic mountains, forests and semi-deserts in Europe.

Tropical greenhouse Fata Morgana is a part of Prague’s Botanical Garden in Troja and the basic admission is 70CZK (€3). For further details see the official website of Prague’s Botanical Garden.

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Mažučiai – Largest Japanese Garden in Europe | Lithuania

Claire — Mon, 30 May 2011 22:34:31 +0000

Mažučiai (Madzuchai) is a village in Lithuania, lying in the district Kretinga, 3 km west of Darbėnai. However the village has only 23 inhabitants it is world-wide known for the largest Japanese garden in Europe.

The creation of this Japanese garden started in 2007 by Šarūnas Kasmauskas in collaboration with the architects of Japanese gardens from Japan (e.g. Hadžime Watanabe, Hiroshi Cunoda…) and is still in progress. The works slowed down considerably sudden economic crisis in 2009. The largest Japanese garden in Europe (16 ha) will be called the Valley of singing stones (Lithuanian Dainuojančių akmenų slėnis). It is located on a hill musicians (Lithuanian Musicians kalnas), the highest hill in the area (its altitude is 32.4 m above sea level). During the establishment of a pond on the hill, a total of 24 springs have been revealed.

The project has no official sponsors yet, nor by the European Union, nor by the Lithuanian State. All funding is coming from the owner – S. Kasmauskas, his family and from charitable donations.

Japanese gardens are one of the important aesthetic elements of Japanese culture. Impress even those that are not closer interested in the culture of this country. The rules of their creation have been developed almost a thousand years. Although the western style gardens are very different, they attract anyone who has a sense of beauty.

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Villa Ephrussi de Rothschild – one of the most beautiful gardens in Europe | France

Claire — Thu, 27 Jan 2011 14:48:16 +0000

Villa Ephrussi de Rothschild is one of the most beautiful gardens in Europe located in France, in St. Jean Cap Ferrat, between Nice and Monaco. St. Jean Cap Ferrat was at the beginning of the 19th century one of the most famous summer resorts in Europe. The most beautiful palace of the French Riviera and in total 9 different gardens of Baroness Béatrice Rothschild is in the form of a ship. 30 gardeners have been working for the vivid dream of Baroness Béatrice. Béatrice, wife of a wealthy Russian banker Maurice Ephrussiho, liked art, to which she dedicated all her life. She collect porcelain, sculptures and antique furniture, and when she died in 1934 in seventy-five years, she left the entire collection to the French Academy of Fine Arts.

The town is a resort of the aristocracy, the wealthy and celebrities. Some famous people spent holidays here, such as Charlie Chaplin, or Winston Churchill. Admission to the villa is 10 euros.

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Gardens and Castle at Kroměříž in Czech republic

Claire — Thu, 13 Jan 2011 08:58:17 +0000

Kroměříž Castle and Gardens are located in the same-name town of Kroměříž in Czech Republic. Archbishop’s castle and gardens are among the most important monuments of Moravia. They were built in the 17th century, after Thirty Years’ War. However at this place, there was the castle already before the Thirty Years’ War, but the castle was destroyed by Swedish people. The history of the castle has been linked with the Olomouc archbishop who built it as his summer residence. The castle has its Chateau garden which was after the Thirty Years’ War transformed from the original fruit and vegetable gardens into the Baroque garden. Later it became a park with many rare trees, lakes and beautiful places. There is the Flower Garden with antique statues and a central roundel. Since 1995, Castle and Gardens in Kroměříž are classified as a national monument and in 1998 were registered on the UNESCO World Heritage Site.

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Powerscourt House and Gardens – the most beautiful gardens in Ireland

Claire — Sat, 27 Nov 2010 12:31:54 +0000

At the beginning of the 18th century on the grounds of Wingfield’s from Powerscourt the large residence and gardens were built, which are considered the most beautiful in Ireland. However here you will not feel like in Ireland. The gardens were designed in the Italian and partially Japanese-style. It has carefully-cut grass and colorful flowers that evoke the atmosphere more like of the southern Europe.

Powerscourt Gardens is dominated by a large lake with a fountain and lots of water lilies. There is even a cemetery of the favorite animals of local family. From here you have a great view of the impressive mountain Great Sugar Loaf.

Powerscourt House and Gardens are located approx. 20km from Dublin city centre.

Opening hours and fees:

Gardens
Daily: 9.30am – 5.30pm
Gardens close at dusk in Winter
Closed December 25th & 26th

Ballroom & Garden Rooms
Sundays 9:30am – 1:30pm All Year
Mondays 9:30am – 1:30pm May to September

Entrance Fees
Adults €6.00, Student/OAP €5.50
Child (U16) €3.50, Child (U5) Free

Waterfall
Opening Times
Jan/Feb/Nov/Dec 10.30am – 4.00pm
Mar/Apr/Sept/Oct 10.30am – 5.30pm
May/Jun/July/Aug 9.30am – 7.00pm
Closed 2 weeks prior to Christmas

Entrance Fees
Adults €5.00, Student/OAP €4.50
Child (U16) €3.50, Children (U2) Free

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Beautiful Gardens of Ninfa in Italy

Claire — Thu, 30 Sep 2010 08:01:44 +0000

The Gardens of Ninfa is a natural monument in central Italy located in the territory of Cisterna di Latina, near Sermoneta and Norma. This is a typical English garden and includes the remains of the ancient town of Ninfa.

The Gardens of Ninfa are open to the public only on certain dates set and the entrance is allowed only through guided tours, in order to preserve its delicate environmental balance.

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The tour lasts about one hour. At the end you can visit the Hortus conclusus, an Italian garden dating from the 17th century, featuring citrus and ponds with swans.

The garden is open to the public from April to October and the basic admission fee is €10.

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