Another Edinburgh Secret: The Caiy Stane
Hidden away just south of Edinburgh City Centre is another offbeat historical sight that few know about, and even fewer have managed to find. It’s the oddly named caiy stane:
Where Is It
The Caiy Stane is near the intersection of Caiystane view and Oxgangs Road (map). It’s a residential neighbourhood – the most unlikely place for a historical monument. Lothian Buses do service this area, Fairmilehead, though if you have a car during your stay you’ll probably find it...
July 19th, 2010 | Andy Hayes | Read More | Comments: 1Filed under: featuredarticle, history, monuments
Red Fort in New Delhi
Historically, the Red Fort in New Delhi has been the capital of the Mughals until 1857 and then the British forces took over the Red Fort from the Mughal Empreror. The British Raj used it as a military camp. Nowadays, the Red Fort is wonderful tourist attraction. It is also a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
The Red Fort in New Delhi
The Red Fort has an extremely high level of art form and ornamental work. The art work in the Red Fort has been influenced by the Persians, Europeans and Indians. This art...
May 17th, 2010 | induspride | Read More | Comments: 1Filed under: Attractions, monuments
Qutub Minar…A Seriously Tall Monument!
... were completed in 1386 by Feroz Shah. The architecture is very similar to the minarets found in Afghanistan.
The Qutab complex houses various other monuments of historical significance. For example, there is the Iron Pillar, which is well over 2000 years old. The pillar is seven meters high and weighs in at six tons. They say if you can wrap your arms around the pillar with you back against the pillar than your wish will be granted. Similarly, there are ancient mosques and tombs from the Moghul...
April 26th, 2010 | induspride | Read More | Comments: 0Filed under: featuredarticle, monuments
El Obelisco, The Single Most Recognizable Sight in Buenos Aires
Located at the Plaza de la República, right at the famous intersection of Avenida Corrientesand 9 de Julio, in the very heart of Buenos Aires, the Obelisco is probably the single most recognizable sight in the city.
Rising to a height of 67 meters, it is tied for the second highest in the world with the Bunker Hill monument in Boston (tiny in comparison with the tallest obelisk in the world, the Washington Monument which stands at 169 meters).
Surrounded by a fence protecting it from graffiti artists,...
April 17th, 2010 | Pablo Juan Augustinowicz | Read More | Comments: 3Filed under: featuredarticle, Historic Landmarks, monuments
Aphra Behn – a free woman
... history that are far more intriguing than the better known sights.
Westminster Abbey cloisters
Westminster Abbey is one of London’s greatest monuments. There’s more than enough in the Abbey to take up a day’s sightseeing, without even scratching the surface. There’s the fine French-influenced ‘rayonnant’ Gothic architecture,there are the tombs of English monarchs, there’s the wonderful chapel of Henry VII with its paper-light, delicate fan vault; there’s...
April 7th, 2010 | Andrea Kirkby | Read More | Comments: 1Filed under: literary london, monuments, tombs, Westminster abbey
India Gate – In Memory of Those Who Died in World War 1
“My arms have mutinied against me — brutes!
India Gate - A World War 1 Monument in New Delhi
My fingers fidget like ten idle brats,
My back’s been stiff for hours, damned hours.
Death never gives his squad a Stand-at-ease.”
Wilfred Owen
English Poet and Soldier killed in World War I, 1893-1918
India Gate stands tall in the heart of New Delhi reminding us of the 90,000 Indian soldiers who lost their lives in World War 1. The soldiers served in the British India Army. The India Gate...
April 1st, 2010 | induspride | Read More | Comments: 0Filed under: featuredarticle, history, monuments
Who the heck is Dugald Stewart?
... of Athens; others are scattered thorughout Britain, in places such as Alton Towers, Elgin, and Shugborough. There’s also several of these monuments in the United States.
I can’t say why this style of monument was chosen – the Choragic monument is typically dedicated to the Greek god of theatre. However, given that many of the buildings in the area erected during this period reflect a heavy Greek influence, it could simply be that Playfair felt only a monument worthy of the...
January 27th, 2010 | Andy Hayes | Read More | Comments: 1Filed under: History & Information, monuments, top-feature
Monuments: Brazen Hare, a master of an island
St. Petersburg has numerous significant large monuments, sculptures, and so on, but there is also a few very interesting little amazing monuments, which sometimes origin from city legends, sometimes are symbols of important events taken place in past.
The hare under the Ioann’s bridge, which connects the Peter and Paul fortress with “big land”, reminds us how the island now hosting the fortress was named before the Russians’ arrival in 1703. Its name was Jaennisaari,...
November 6th, 2009 | Ivan Stupachenko | Read More | Comments: 1Filed under: monuments
Free Monuments Tour for Just a “Tip”
... be so very fun, but sometimes you want the back story…the facts…the history…the dirt.
And that’s where DC By Foot come in with their Free monuments Walk Tour.
Walking tours of the national Mall monuments, led by energetic, knowledgeable guys who love American and DC history not only take you on a guided tour, but can tell you stories and provide background information you normally might not hear and make you laugh.
And the tours are FREE!
As DC’s only tip-based tour guides, DC by Foot...
September 16th, 2009 | Jon Rochetti | Read More | Comments: 0Filed under: DC vacation, monuments, National Mall, Tours, Washington DC
Open Monumentendagen, World Heritage Days
Every year, the second weekend in September marks Open Monumentendag (Heritage Days). During this an annual event monuments which are normally closed to the public, open their doors, not only in Amsterdam but in the whole country and the rest of Europe.
Hollandse Schouwburg
On Saturday 12 and Sunday 13 September 2009, sixty-two monumental Amsterdam buildings are open to the public, free of charge. Participating buildings fly the Open Monumenten Dag flag, which shows a key symbol.
Amsterdam VVV...
September 7th, 2009 | Marianne Crone | Read More | Comments: 0Filed under: free, History & Information, monuments, museums, News, open day, The Arts
The Story Behind the Jefferson Memorial in Washington, DC
... the principal author of the Declaration of Independence and third US President, the Jefferson Memorial in Washington, DC is one of the most visited monuments on the National Mall by vacationers. It’s also one of the most photographed memorials during the annual cherry blossom festival.
But it almost ended up in another location, off the National Mall.
Designed by architect John Russell Pope, the Jefferson Memorial was built between 1939 and 1942 in West Potomac Park along the Tidal Basin. ...
August 6th, 2009 | Jon Rochetti | Read More | Comments: 0Filed under: Attractions, Family Friendly, Jefferson Memorial, memorials, monuments, tidal basin, Washington DC
Monument Monday – To the Inventor of the Screw Propeller
Washington, DC has it’s share of monuments. Some to the nation’s Founding Fathers, other memorials and statues to less famous and even more obscure people.
A monument just a short walk from the Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall is just one of those. It memorializes the contributions of Swedish inventor and mechanical engineer John Ericsson (1803-1889).
Among his 588 patents, Ericsson is considered one of the several men that simultaneously and separately invented the screw...
June 29th, 2009 | Jon Rochetti | Read More | Comments: 0Filed under: Attractions, Ericsson, memorials, monuments, propeller, Washington DC
Monument Monday – General Philip Sheridan in Sheridan Circle
In the heart of Washington, DC’s Dupont Circle/Kalprama neighborhood, is Sheridan Circle, with an equestrian statue honoring Union General Philip H. Sheridan.
Created in 1908 by sculptor Gutzon Borglum, who is best known for his 60-foot (18m) carvings of four giant American presidents on Mount Rushmore in North Dakota.
His first notable work was a bust of Abraham Lincoln, which was on display in the White House during Theodore Roosevelt’s presidency, and has since been placed on permanent...
June 8th, 2009 | Jon Rochetti | Read More | Comments: 0Filed under: Attractions, civil-war, Dupont Circle, General Sheridan, monuments, Washington DC
Panoramic view from 42 meters
The very heart of St. Petersburg is the Peter and Paul fortress, the building erected specially to protect the spot from the Sweden army in 1703. Only after other places — streets and districts appeared. The very heart of the fortress is the Peter and Paul Cathedral. The very heart of the Cathedral of course is the bell tower. This bell tower topped with an Angel serving as the city’s patron is the highest building in St. Petersburg reaching 122,5 meters.
Since early May till 15th...
May 2nd, 2009 | Ivan Stupachenko | Read More | Comments: 0Filed under: Announcements, Excursions, History & Information, monuments, museums, News, sightseeings, Tours
Peterhof: the Fountains start!
On May, 8 the Peterhof will be overcrowded, I tell you! I’ll be there too. The first day of the season of the The Russian Versailles, which event can compete with it? It is worth seeing this. Oh, I haven’t told you yet, what the Peterhof is? So, if put it briefly (in details I’ll tell in my later posts), this is a suburb of St. Petersburg which used to be a summer residence of the Russian Emperial House. It was built by the order of Peter the Great, first Russian Emperor, the founder...
May 1st, 2009 | Ivan Stupachenko | Read More | Comments: 1Filed under: Announcements, Attractions, Hotels & Places to Stay, monuments, museums, suburbs, The Arts
Monument Monday – General Rochambeau Statue at Lafayette Square
Directly across Pennsylvania Avenue from the White House is Lafayette Square. One of the more prominent statues in the park is of French General, Jean-Baptiste Donatien de Vimeur, Comte de Rochambeau, or General Rochambeau for short.
During the American Revolutionary War, French Lt. General Rochambeau, landed on American shores at Newport, Rhode Island in 1780, along with six French regiments (5,500 soldiers) as part of the Expédition Particulière.
As a French aristocrat and lifelong soldier,...
March 23rd, 2009 | Jon Rochetti | Read More | Comments: 2Filed under: Attractions, Lafayette Park, monuments, statues, Washington DC
Monument Monday – Changing of the Guard at Arlington Cemetery
The Tomb of the Unknowns at Arlington National Cemetery outside of Washington, DC has been guarded around the clock, 365 days-a-year, since 1937.
Beginning after World War II, a special detail from the 3rd Infantry Regiment, also called The Old Guard, have been protecting the tomb.
The tomb, honoring an unidentified soldier who died during World War I in France was created in 1921. The soldier was initially buried in Arlington National Cemetery in a crypt with a white marble top. Eleven years...
March 16th, 2009 | Jon Rochetti | Read More | Comments: 0Filed under: Arlington, arlington-cemetery, Attractions, Changing of the guards, monuments, tomb
Monument Monday – George B. McClellan in Washington, DC
One of the Union Army’s most famous Generals, is best known not for great victories, but for being fired by President Abe Lincoln, for being too hesitant to engage his troops against Confederate forces. Even when significantly outnumbering the rebels, Major General George B. McClellan, was slow to attack.
McClellan lead the Union’s Army of the Potomac and served as the general-in-chief of the Union Army for 5 months during the Civil War. He rose to fame based on his reputation...
February 23rd, 2009 | Jon Rochetti | Read More | Comments: 0Filed under: Attractions, civil-war, monuments, Washington DC
Snow Day in Washington, DC
Today, the region woke up to a couple inches of snow and some ice that closed schools and left the people of the region rushing to stock up on milk, bread and TP.
Even President Obama had a comment about the snow and the resulting school closings as seen on Politico.
Image – Flickr – Washington Monument, Lincoln Memorial
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January 28th, 2009 | Jon Rochetti | Read More | Comments: 0Filed under: monuments, News, snow, Washington DC
The New Capitol Visitor’s Center
The weekend after it opened last month, I toured the new $600 million (580,000 sq. ft.) U.S. Capitol Visitor Center. And it is impressive.
The underground building is a much-needed addition in, dramatically enhancing a visit to the U.S. Capitol. It provides not only a comfortable and out of the elements waiting area for tourists who have been forced to historically wait in line braving the elements, but also a place to educate visitors on the American democracy in the history of our congressional...
January 24th, 2009 | Jon Rochetti | Read More | Comments: 1Filed under: Attractions, Family Friendly, monuments, U.S.-Capitol, Washington DC
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