The first important work of Catalan architect Antoni Gaudí after graduating from architecture school is now on sale. The Herrero Jover family, owners of Casa Vicens, decided to sell it on September of last year.
I stumbled upon this news a couple of weeks ago and it took me by surprise because it never occurred to me that anybody would sell any of Gaudí’s works.
See “update” at the end of the article.
Back in 2003 I was looking for information about traveling to Egypt and I stumbled upon an intriguing website that announced the winners of the contest for the design of the new Grand Egyptian Museum.
Well, I had no idea there were plans to build a new museum in Cairo! Didn’t they have a gorgeous pink Victorian building as the home of the Museum of Egyptian Antiquities?
I’ve spoken before about ancient civilizations, but Lascaux is even older than what we might call “ancient”.
I am always fascinated by the past, but viewed in the right context what seems old is not that old at all.
Here’s a place where we can get in touch with our earliest ancestors (or at least get an idea, more on that later) and try to get a feel of what the world was for them, how they saw it and how they lived in it.
Imagine a group of people gathered around a sacred place, painting subjects that were important for them, to the light of a torch or a small ceramic lamp with so much care.
A few weeks ago I stumbled upon a National Geographic photograph of the Shwedagon Pagoda, en Myanmar, a sight I had never seen before and my jaw literally dropped to my chest.
Photo taken by Ralf-André Lettau, Wikipedia.
The gleaming gold structure does not resemble any western idea of architecture and it kind of looked to me like something out of this world.
But I’ve learned not to underestimate the power and wonder of the human spirit and instead I went on to research this magnificent temple.
I heard it said a couple of times before that Simon Bolivar (Simón Bolívar as it is written in Spanish) is the historical character with more statues in the world.
Really?
I don’t know if that’s true, but there are certainly statues of the Latin America liberator in places that have nothing to do with his story or achievements. I find that fact surprising and intriguing.
Is it really the Tomb of Saint Peter under Saint Peter’s...February 13, 2012 - 05:00
Why are there so many statues of Simon Bolivar?April 19, 2012 - 20:15
7 things to consider before visiting The Chateau of Ver...September 5, 2011 - 20:00
Gaudi’s intriguing unknown secret near BarcelonaSeptember 9, 2011 - 04:50
