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Budapest Hungary
If I am being honest, Budapest is one of the cities that I was not very familiar with compared to Paris, Rome, London, etc… Probably my knowledge about its country was only acquired mostly from the movies that I have seen recently which featured some parts of Hungary such as: I Spy, Transporter 3, Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol, Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy, to name a few. In the end, I was glad I joined the one-day trip to this beautiful city from Vienna, since we had an engaging day with our enthusiastic tour guide who educated us about Hungary’s rich history and culture. It included a visit to an authentic…
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Meeting with the “Cumil” in Bratislava, Slovakia
While walking along the busy streets of Bratislava, one of the things that caught my attention was this statue they called “Cumil” or “the watcher”. It’s a bronze sculpture of a man peeping out of the manhole. Apparently, this is one of the most popular statues. Since 1997, when it was first embedded in the ground, it has become one of the symbols of the Old Town and the most photographed statue of Bratislava. It is said that there are several possible explanations for this statue. First, he is a sewer worker resting. Second, he is heading down to clean up the mess. Others said, he is there looking under…
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GUM Department Store, Red Square
Moscow Gum Department store in Kitai-gorod facing the Red Square is the most glamorous and expensive shopping mall in Russia. Gum literally mean “main universal store“, was originally built in 1893. With its sky-high prices, to me it’s an excellent place to window shop and its collections of hundreds of exclusive boutiques and have a feel of being in this lavish shop for the rich and fortunate beings. This three-level glass-roofed state of the art building is quite exquisite and is well worth exploring even if you’re not literally buying anything. All the while, I had the impression that everything inside this enormous shopping mall was expensive until our eloquent…
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Saint Basil’s Cathedral, Red Square Moscow
The Saint Basil’s Cathedral in Moscow, is probably the most prominent & recognizable Russian architecture and world-famous landmark. It is shaped like a rising flame with a strikingly ornate red brick building, crowned with colored onion domes. Most people would say and it’s obvious that it is not the building’s interior artifacts that attract visitors, but rather the Cathedral’s exterior distinctive architecture. It is originally known as Trinity Church, but now commonly known as St. Basil’s Cathedral or The Cathedral of Vasily the Blessed; it is now serves as a museum. This Church is located in Red Square in Moscow built in 1555–1561, under the orders of Tsar Ivan IV,…
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The Church of the Savior of Spilled Blood, Saint Petersburg
Built between 1883 and 1907, the Church of the Savior on Spilled Blood, with its official name, the Church of the Resurrection of Jesus Christ, is conveniently located close to Nevsky Prospect. This Church has a similar grandeur and style to St Basil’s Cathedral in Moscow. With its beautiful mosaic, paintings and typical Russian architecture, it’s probably one of the most compelling site to see when visiting St Petersburg. For more details, please check my book INSPIRED TO TRAVEL; TRAVEL TO INSPIRE.
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Immense Peterhof Palace in Saint Petersburg
Peterhof Palace, also called the “Russian Versailles” is famous for its series of palaces, beautiful gardens, fountains and museums. Laid out on the orders of Tsar Peter the Great, it was officially opened on August 14, 1723. The palace-ensemble along with the city center is recognized as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Peterhof is a Dutch/German word meaning “Peter’s Court”. Peterhof Palace is a product of one man’s fascination with beauty and an obsession with greatness and grandeur apparently intensified after visiting and getting inspired by Versailles in France on 1717. More exquisite statues and fountains are along the axis from the palace to the pier. The truly imposing view of…
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Saint Petersburg, Russia
I always had a fascination of someday traveling to Russia that started in my high school days. With my minute knowledge, plus narratives learned from all sorts of media, on October 2015 my curiosity paved the way to finally travel to the “Largest country in the world” by land area, a super power, home to some of the most inspiring and brilliant races in the world. Russia, a former Soviet Union Country, now with its official name the “Russian Federation”, is covering more than one-eight of the Earth’s inhabited land area. My first stop was Pulkovo Airport in the country’s second-largest city Saint Petersburg that was founded by Tsar Peter…
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The Square of Miracles and the Leaning Tower of Pisa Italy
For tourists, there are so many things to see and discover in this part of the Tuscany Region. Pisa, is probably well-known for the iconic Leaning Tower, but there’s so many other things to explore especially within the Piazza del Miracoli or Square of Miracles. It is amazing to know that there are other equally interesting structures within its vicinity that I only learned during my visit. And that is The Square of Miracles, or Piazza dei Miracoli, that is recognized as one of the finest architectural complexes in the world. The Square existed in early Medieval Times and within its walls of 8.87 hectares is the three main monuments:…
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Experiencing the excitement of being at the “Top of Europe” – Jungfraujoch Switzerland
One of the highlights of visiting the Swiss Alps was to be able to reach the top of the Jungfrau mountain which is called the ” Top of Europe”. Standing on the Jungfraujoch 3,454 metres above sea level. I remember after suffering from a lack of breath at such a high altitude I had to rush to the covered area to breath normally again. Aside from that, my outfit that day wasn’t appropriate enough for such extreme cold weather. Next time, I will make sure that I will be fully geared up with proper winter clothing to fully enjoy the experience.
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Geneva Switzerland – Stunning City
I only had one day scheduled to explore Geneva which unfortunately really did not do it justice considering its magnitude in history and of so many interesting things to see and do. Still, I’m so delighted to have an up-close and personal experience to visit this wonderful city. I enjoyed the moment being in a country whose name itself is synonymous to high quality, an indelible excellent reputation earned especially in the field of Horology, particularly in watchmaking. For hours, I content myself window shopping admiring at the beautiful pieces of luxury of…
