Travel blog
Nestled between walls and with the Sierra de Guadarrama as a backdrop, Pedraza breathes the worn air of the centuries. Few, very few, are fortunate to be considered one of the best preserved medieval towns not only in Segovia or Castilla y León, but also …
The most beautiful natural landscape in the interior of Croatia, the Plitvice Lakes National Park (in Croatian: Nacionalni Park Plitvička jezera), is well worth a visit during our stay in Dubrovnik. It is not a nearby excursion, since it is more than 400 kilometers away, …
The best known prehistoric building is Stonehenge, which is located in Salisbury, just about 130 km from London. Based on the studies carried out, it is considered as one of the most sacred places in Europe between the Neolithic and the Bronze Age.
Stonehenge continues being one of the constructions that more mysteries and questions raises, since it has not yet been discovered what was the origin or the reason to build it as what were the reasons for which it was forgotten.
Of course, studies on this construction have been successful. Today it is known that it was built around 3100 BC, which would move us until the end of the Neolithic, and has generated so many questions about how they have been able to lift these stones that weigh about 50 tons each.
Initially, this same place was used to make collective burials, later they continued the construction of wooden structures and, finally, the great stones that have made this place famous. As with the impressive Fly Geyser, which was accidentally created during the drilling of wells, this wonderful place is born in the United States
The construction was based on an outer circle of 30 meters in diameter and 30 carved blocks of 4.30 meters high were used. Then the cobalt blue blocks known as bluestones were arranged, a total of 57 stones arranged in another circle. Thirdly, a horseshoe-shaped open structure to the northwest was created, with an oval inside, with five blocks of stone. Fourth, the Altar Stone was placed along with the Sacrifice Stone and the Heel Stone, the latter two being believed to identify the summer solstice.
That said, the latest studies state that the arrangement of the stones that can be seen today corresponds to the year 1964, the last time they were moved. And it has been that over the years some of the megaliths have had to be restored, only seven of the twenty-five remain unchanged.
Although it is still unclear who built the monument or for what purpose, it is known that it was a place of ancestral worship and there is speculation that it was a temple dedicated to ancient gods, an astronomical observatory or a place of sacrifices.
It has been considered that this construction was built by different civilizations and characters such as the Druids, Saxons, Romans, Danes or even speculated with the magician Merlin.
As we indicated before by the position of the megaliths around the sun and the summer solstice, it is believed that both the sun and the moon would have great importance in the function of this construction. Therefore, it is speculated that it could have to do with festivities that were done in solstices and not only aimed at agriculture, also life and death, which leads us to talk about fertility rituals and the world of spirits
It is important to mention that the analysis of the remains of cremations found in the place has given greater importance to this place, since they are remains of people who lived in other areas of Europe.
Despite this, it is still unknown who built it or what the specific purpose was but it is believed that it was one of the most sacred and revered places in Europe.
To travel or visit the Stonehenge, you have to approach Amesbury, a city that is located in the Wiltshire region of the United Kingdom. The location is southwest of London, about 100 kilometers, and about 13 kilometers from Salisbury.
From London you can take a train that takes you to Salisbury or Andover, being an hour and a half journey. From Salisbury you would only have to take a bus or a taxi that brings you as close as possible to the place.
Another option is to take a bus from Heathrow airport and from Victoria station, the duration is 2 hours and takes you to Salisbury and Amesbury.
The Neuschwanstein Castle, in southern Bavaria, is one of the most visited places in Germany and often appears as a cover image in the country’s travel guides. And the Schloss Neuschwanstein is probably the best example of «fairy tale castle» that we can see in …
The Grand Place is the most famous, lively and photographed place in Brussels. With dozens of famous buildings, it is one of the most beautiful architectural complexes in Europe. The Grand Place (Grote Markt in flamenco, Gran Plaza in Spanish) is the geographical, historical and …
The «tunnel of love» is a beautiful place located in Klevan, Ukraine. It is a 3-kilometer long railway that leads to a wood processing factory.
Perhaps this seems more boring than you thought, but what makes these roads take the name of «Tunnel of Love» is the spectacular foliage that surrounds them, which has been created by the swing of trains and whose splendor is worthy of being preserved in paintings and photographs.
The result is a dense tunnel where the branches of the trees barely let sunlight in, a landscaping creation so striking that it has become one of the favorite places for couples. They say in the place that, if two people are sincere in their love and cross the tunnel holding hands, their wishes are fulfilled.
According to the records of the city of Klevan, formerly there were three trains on the road that transported materials or people from the factories to the city or vice versa. However, they stopped circulating, which gave rise to the foliage of the forest growing around the tracks. Today, part of the road is still in operation, with a private route train that fulfills the same task of yesteryear and its noisy singing tells couples to turn away from the road.
The vegetation tunnel reaches a third of the entire road, and its color changes according to the time of day. While the sun is at the top the greenish tones stand out with great brightness, but at sunset it seems the magical entrance to a mysterious forest full of golden tones. Photographers immediately fall in love with the tunnel no matter what angle they capture it from.
The almost three kilometers of tunnel are perfectly molded to let the train pass and all the branches come out unscathed. That is why it has that particular square shape, because no human passes by to prune or fix the passage.
This beautiful natural tunnel is considered one of the most romantic places in the world, because in addition to its particular mixture between the works of man and nature, the light and the branches of the trees create a unique landscape of difficult vibrant colors to resist. Couples feel that, for a moment, they have entered a limbo between reality and magic, and some also seem to feel in a more ancient apoca.
If you go to Ukraine definitely take a day to travel to the small town of Klevan, which only has 8,000 inhabitants, and ask the locals for the address to the railway headquarters and the way to follow to the tunnel of love. Of course, you must go with your partner to make a wish and make it come true.
Preikestolen is a lift which has more than 1980 feet high and is located at Lyse fjord located in Ryfylke, which in turn is located in the region of Rogaland in western Norway. The best way to reach this wonder of northern Europe, one of …
Cabarceno Natural Park in Spain is a spectacular fauna paradise that welcomes in semi hundreds of animals representing all of Earth zoological communities. In this reserve of endangered species can be seen, as in any other corner of Europe, the spectacle of distant wildlife: tigers, …
The Roman Colosseum has been declared one of the Seven Wonders of the World in 2007 and has since become one of the most visited monuments in Europe and the world. It is the symbol of an entire empire, the sample of the immense power of a city over a vast empire that stretched to the limits of the East, uniting East and West.
As with the Sistine Chapel in the Vatican, the Coliseum is the main symbol of Rome, an imposing building almost 2,000 years old, it will take you back in time to discover what society was like in the ancient Roman Empire.
His real name is Flavian Amphitheater, the name was later given Colosseum, is believed to refer to the colossal statue of Nero that was in the vicinity. It is undoubtedly the most representative work of Roman art and art representing that symbol being the greatness and power of the Roman Empire. The construction is mandated by Vespasian in AD 72 and was inaugurated in 80 AD, under the reign of the Emperor Titus.
Upon completion of construction the Coliseum became the largest Roman amphitheater, with dimensions of 188 meters long, 156 meters wide and 57 meters high. Available 80 rows of bleachers and housed more than 50,000 spectators.
Inside under the bleachers were huge halls that allowed rapid evacuation and facilitated the entrance to the amphitheater. Most of the boxes had an anteroom and were distributed according to their social status.
The sand is formed by wooden beams under which there is a basement corridors, cages, warehouses, prisons, and other elements necessary for the development of the shows.
In front of the Capitol and at our feet have the Roman Forum, the place where all the past lies the Roman Empire, now in ruins. From there you can admire the Circus Maximus, the Roman Forum, Trajan, the Temple of Saturn and Concord, or the Valley of the Amphitheatre with the famous Colosseum. From there, we lose sight to years of struggle, domination, magnificence, greatness, and relive in imagination the society that had us so well in films like Gladiator.
In the background, after that magical landscape full of history, we see the Flavian Amphitheatre, nestled between the hills Palatine, Celio and Esquilino. Today, even in ruins, impressive elegance.
During the Roman Empire, under the slogan of «Pan et Circus», the Roman Colosseum allowed to enjoy their favorite shows. Samples of exotic animals, executions of prisoners, reenactments of battles and gladiator fights for years joined the Roman people.
The Colosseum remained in service for over 500 years. The last games were celebrated history in the sixth century.
From the sixth century the Colosseum suffered looting, earthquakes and even bombings during World War II. With a great instinct for survival, the Colosseum was used for decades as a store, church, cemetery and even as a castle for the nobility.
Currently the Coliseum, along with the Vatican, the biggest tourist attraction in Rome. Every year is visited by 6 million tourists.