Amazing Tilt-Shift Video of Swiss Landscape and Trains

Some of you, amateur world photographers, have probably heard about "tilt-shift" photography. It's a special technique, which allows you to focus only on specific parts of the picture, to emphasize its particularity. And the results, well - you can see an amazing example here:

First time I saw it, I thought: "Hey, those are toy trains!" and I bet I'm not the only one to think this way.
The truth is, this is a photo of a real train made using the "tilt-shift" technique.

This movie project is particularly interesting - it's all about beautiful Swiss countryside (villages of Sisikon and Göschenen) and its magnificent, legendary trains. If you had any doubts whether you should visit Switzerland and take a ride - I think the short movie below might be a nudge in the right direction for you. it is a project filmed by Andi Leemann and Jeri Peier (if you're interested in technicalities: they used two EOS 5D Mark II cameras, a Canon 90mm TS-E f/2.8 and a Canon TS-E 24mm f/3.5 combined with a 1.4x converter, woohoo!).


And now, sit back and enjoy the amazing views of Swiss Trains from an amazing perspective:

gottardo nord from fb1 visuals on Vimeo.

Hope you like it as much as I do :)

Source: http://www.geeksaresexy.net/

Paris

Not much is going on in Paris. But Paris is Paris. The best shopping district is still Avenue Montaigne, François 1er and Avenue du Faubourg Saint Honoré (All in walking distance).
We used to stay at Pershing Hall near the same aera. However, this will be the last time. We do not agree with the new principle "Pay more Get Less". You pay George V prices get no service at all. Forget the Boutique hotels in Paris  , go for  5 stars:
Hotel Barriere Fouquet or Georges V. Just make sure you book the one in the location you like and which attract guests in the same tribe as you.
Restaurant: Avenue Montaigne is still a must
Pinxo owned by Chef Dutournier is very a good choice also for lunch. Stick at the bar.
Go for the Michelin stars restaurants you should not be disappointed. Or for the real fashionita Parisian experience Avenue , they are all there

London

I need to update my list of restaurants in London. On paper , London is not the capital of Gastronomy it is Tokyo with 11 , 3 star Michelin restaurants , then it is Paris with 10. However, London is a city where there is always something is happening and a lot of new restaurants  , they just pop up.
So far my favorite restaurant is UMU,  a Japanese michelin star restaurant. Eating at the bar is always more fun, you can enjoy the talent of the sushi chef. Do you know thee guys  need at least 7 years of study to be a master sushi chef , as much as a doctor ! This is art on the plate, I never have enough of it. They also offer cooking classes on Saturday...on my list of things I want to do

Since Joel Rebuchon opened his restaurant L'Atelier , the big trend in London is the tapas type of food served at the bar. An excellent one surfing on this trend ,  located in Soho is Barrafina. Which I will define as fine Spanish tapas.

From the same owners Sam and Eddy, in the same district you should also try QUO Vadis, an excellent  restaurant. The menus change often. The dishes are fresh, tasty and delicious! If you know the right people you can enjoy a cocktail upstairs at their private club.

Cipriani is still on the circuit of rich and famous. Scotts and Cecconi's are on the list also. Scotts is good for seafood and Cecconi is a good place for breakfast.

Hix just opened in Soho, good service, good english food...good place for oysters.
Aqua from Hong Kong just opened two restaurants , but I have not be there yet.

Despite the financial crisis there have been many new openings in Canary Wharf area: Roka just opened another place there and Jamie Oliver opened an Italian restaurant also.

What to do in London:

Don't miss Anish Kipoor at the Royal Academy of Art (until december 11) especially is work on wax!
National Portrait Gallery: Beatles to Bowie exhibition
Saatchi Gallery
Also some very interesting private galleries near Bond Street
and of course the Xmas lights !

Nails & Amp; Nail and eyebrow Champagne bar at Harvey Nichols: try this Indian technique a bit painful but quick and efficient.

Boston

I have to say Boston was not on my top list of "I really have to go place"!

First of all, I was not excited to fly to the USA via Newark. Despite them  taking all of your 10 fingers print and your picture, they are quite friendly nowadays! No big queues at customs like it use to be! No more grumpy staff! Clean an refurbished airport! Good Start.

So Boston, autumn is a great time to visit this city. I found it very clean and polished, very WASPy, quite pretty , also with all those old very well preserved buildings. You really have a feeling of safety. On the contrary nothing is happening there.. this place is absolutely not where the new trends are emerging.

In fact it is a nice place to visit, you can find good restaurants, walk in the park and play with the squirrels (on of my favorite moments). Shopping is good, there is three american size malls ,  all connected plus two shopping streets with most of the high end brand.

Go to the hair dresser, I suggest MISO an all white modern corridor.

And finally walk on the waterfront , visit the Aquarum, and of course take the three hour trip to watch the Whales. We saw at least 20 of them, loads of different species, absolutly magic!

Stay at the Mandarin Oriental. Great bar for a glass of Champagne
before and probably after diner. Great location, right in the center and walking distance to all the shops and squirrel park!

Restaurants :G Oysters, we tried the oysters plateau with 6 different kinds of North American oysters, we recommand also the Clams and Scallops. Eaten at the bar is the best! If you are more of a carnivore you can try the restaurant opposite owned by the same person ,  the Butcher.

O YA Japanese restaurant: the modern sushi is excellent... normal sushi tasted so borring once you tasted the modern!

CLIO, also a very good restaurant

We also went to  to L'Espalier, but honesly I don't recommand it, it is too up itself to be good.

What to do in Grampian Scotland

What to do in Grampian Scotland  

by  Stig Johanson 

Have you been pondering lately the possibility of maybe taking a trip to a foreign country? If so, I would highly recommend that you look into going to either Grampian, Scotland or Aberdeen, Scotland as there are so many fun things to see and do there!

 For starters, while staying in the Aberdeenshire area that encompasses the cities of both Aberdeen and Grampian, you should definitely look into going on one of their hot air balloon rides! This is a fantastic experience that you will not soon forget! Do you love castles and all things having to do with royalty? If so, I’m sure you will be thrilled to hear that famous landmarks such as Crathes Castle and Castle Fraser are just a few of the gorgeous sights that you can expect to see while on your ballooning trip!





Also, are you a big fan of the performing arts? If so, I would highly recommend that you check out His Majesty’s Theatre while visiting Scotland! Every night, there are top notch actors and actresses here that put on a great show doing everything from opera, pantomime, and musicals, just to name a few.

If you happen to visit Scotland during one of their warm seasons, going to Codonas which is located at Beach Boulevard would be great fun for the whole family! At Codonas you will find an outdoor amusement park that offers not only rides such as roller coasters, but they also offer arcade machines, bingo and ten pin bowling!

Photo By: Divv3k

Another great activity in Grampian is quad biking. This can be enjoyed by anyone over the age of 16, this is for insurance purposes. Whilst better in the summer with dryer weather it can be done all year round. For the speed freaks amongst us, this is a lifetime must do. With the freedom of the track and in the company or your friends this is an great way to spend an afternoon or morning. I say afternoon or morning because youd have to be super fit to do a day of it, its very tiring. Do a search for Howie Irvine or House of Mulben. Both centres offer quad biking.

If you are an animal lover, and do you especially love marine animals? If so, you will be sure to enjoy going on a dolphin watching cruise trip through Aberdeen Harbour during your stay in Scotland! The view of the harbor is simply spectacular, and the dolphins themselves are quite stunning! Watching the dolphins play together as they swim near the boat is not only fun to watch, but it is also a very relaxing experience. Many times, the dolphins will even decide to do some acrobatic tricks which really are a fantastic sight to behold! Also, if you look closely during your dolphin watching cruise, don’t be surprised if you happen to spot a few other marine animals such grey seals and possibly even a minke whale!

Photo by: Almac555

I wish you the best of luck, and I hope that you and your family have a wonderful time while vacationing in Scotland!

About the Author: http://www.kirktowngm.co.uk
Article Source: ActiveAuthors.com
Photo Sources: flickr.com, visitscotland.com

Sweden: A Mythical Lesbian City

There is a wide range of reasons to visit Sweden: beautiful nature, friendly people, mooses and other wild game... the list is unending. But there is another, and a very curious one, reason to visit this Viking country: a hidden city of Swedish Amazones!

 If you are a tourist planning to visit Sweden, you shoud be aware of this story. There have been rumors of a city dwelled by 25,00 lesbians somewhere in the northern parts of the country. The Swedish tourist authorities (not to mention the Internet queries) are being swarmed with questions about this intriguing topic.






Source: anthromodernity.com 


The story has been spreading in Asia - in Chinese media, for example, you can find some information about a city called "Chako Paul City", supposedly founded in 1820 in northern Sweden by a wealthy man-hating widow who banned all males from entering the settlement. After some time, all of the women were to become lesbian, “because they could not suppress their sexual needs,” reports China’s Harbin News service. The city can be recognized by an medieval castle built there to protect the city, as well as tall, blonde and strong women guarding the premises.

 Needless to say, the Swedish tourist authorities are as surprised as the rest of the nation. Claes Bertilson, the spokesman for SALAR, says: “I've no idea where this came from, but it's not true. At 25,000 residents, the town would be one of the largest in northern Sweden, and I find it hard to believe that you could keep something like that a secret for more than 150 years.”

 Mountains in Lappland, Sweden.   

(Wikimedia Commons/Alexandre Buisse (Nattfodd)/"GNU Free Documentation License")

Although Per Wilhelmsson of the tourist office in Umea in northern Sweden said he had never heard of Chako Paul City, he did confirm that tourism in the area is bustling.
“Our tourism industry is doing quite well, among the best in northern Sweden,” he said.

He also confirmed that no “women-only” city existed in northern Sweden, but the story reminded him of an 30-year old stunt carried out by Pajala, a northern Swedish town suffering from a different problem:
“They arranged for bus loads of women to come up to this town because there weren't enough of them,” he explained.

When asked what else might be drawing tourists to northern Sweden besides the chance to visit an isolated town filled with sexually frustrated females, Wilhelmsson had a theory of his own.

“It’s hard to say for sure, but I think part of it might be increased interest following our designation as Europe’s Cultural Capital for 2014,” he said.


Source:   
http://www.newser.com/

http://www.thelocal.se/22476/20091005/