Casa Batlló Barelona

Casa Batlló is an outstanding architectural delight. Once the family home of Antoni Gaudi, the building has been restored with much respect of its architectural heritage, opening to the public as a private museum to the in 2002. It design is unprecedented in the architectural world, and on The Noble floor which was the main living space of the family, there is not a single straight line to be found anywhere  The fluid, fluctuating textures of the walls echo the natural ebb and flow of the tide. Each softly curved surface creates the illusion of the building as a living, breathing creature, and at times it feels as if you are inside a giant beautiful mollusk, deep in depths of the sea.

A visit to the Casa Batlló is a wonderful surreal experience; the museum have used the latest technology to make each visit as informative and entertaining as possible. The electronic guide, which is the same size as an iPhone, contains extra effects and images to show how the rooms would have looked completely furnished, when Gaudi lived there.

The building is surprisingly light and airy. Its central structure contains a beautifully tiled vertical shaft to a decorated window situated on the surface of the Dragon Roof Terrace, which provides both light and internal ventilation. Not one of the tiles has a straight surface and the carefully coordinated colour gradient gives the impression that it is as light at the bottom as the top!

The stunning roof terrace is shaped like the vertebra of a dragons back, and is decorated with carnival masks of the dragon’s victims. The design is a celebration of the legend of Saint Jordi (Saint George). It a wonderfully romantic story of damsel rescued by a dashing knight!

Exterior Casa Batlló

Exterior Casa Batlló

Interior: The Nobel Floor

 The Nobel Floor: Stained glass which appears to be made from different colours from each side!

 The Nobel Floor; huge golden light in the center of the sitting room ceiling

The Noble Floor: fabulous jeweled chandelier

View from interior stairwell

View from interior stairwell

Dragon rooftop terrace

Dragon rooftop terrace

Please note that I have a new blog with travel features, poetry and short story excerpts at: http://soniakilvingtonwriter.com/

Bucharest: Romantic Romania

My first visit to Bucharest was not at all as I expected. Having being invited as a guest writer to the university (translation department), I was keen to find out if the images of the place I had imagined in my head, actually matched the place itself. I found to my pleasure, that Bucharest is an amazing, vibrant, cultural, and unashamedly romantic place.  Yes of course there is an eclectic mix of different architectural styles, including the severe looking communist apartment blocks, but somehow the city has retained an aura of ‘’lost world elegance” despite the neglect  of the recent communist era (1947-1989). 

Once affectionately known as ‘Little Paris’ (early 1900’s) for its extravagant night life, it felt a little more like Vienna to me. The romantic feel of the place was everywhere, from the gorgeous paintings of Nicolae Grigorescu in the National Museum of Art of Romania to the undeniable charm of the Old Town, which has undergone some serious restoration in recent years. As many visitors have said Bucharest has a duality to it. There is the lovely architectural and interesting daytime experience and a much more exuberant night life (choose your nighttime destination carefully).

If you are visiting the capital anytime soon, try not to miss having lunch at the Caru’ cu Bere. Not only for its stunning surroundings and excellent food, but also for the delightful entertainment - which was a quartet of classical musicians and a very lovely young singer on the afternoons I was there. There are also some lovely cafes too, serving some of the most delicious little cakes I have ever eaten. (My favorite was Chocolat, in a side street near the Hilton).

It is worth bearing in mind, that the galleries and museums are generally closed on Mondays and Tuesdays.

National Museum of Romanian History

Caru' cu Bere restaurant 

Street View - Old Town

CEC Palace

Cismigiu Garden

The Stock Exchange Palace

Statue of Mihai Eminescu

Inside the Romanian Athenaeum

Beautiful stairway in the Romanian Athenaeum

Travel Fiction: The Copacabana Experience

When reading travel features, do you ever imagine how it feels to experience the exotic locations? In travel fiction, the boundaries between real life and fantasy become a little blurred in order to create a new, different perception. (As this is in  part fantasy, please note that the accompanying photos are for illustration only - all previous blogs contain my own photographs).

Are we travelling to the same place?

For many travellers, Copacabana is associated exclusively with Rio de Janeiro, that teaming multicultural hot spot of dance and Latin passion. But today I’m travelling to a very different Copacabana - to a small town in Bolivia on the shore of Lake Titicaca. It’s the sacred home of the Incas and the mythical birth place of creation.

La Virgen de la Candelaria

Copacabana is a quiet, rural town where fishing and agriculture are the mainstays of life. It’s a place where languages, traditions, beliefs and unique customs are intermingled in feasts and rituals, music and dances, and the preservation of its sacred places. Like many a world weary traveller, I am visiting Copacabana for one of its sacred festivals. I am praying that the ‘Fiesta de la Virgen de la Candelaria’, will revive my vitality.

Does she have a secret past?

The town is small but interesting, and today its most famous resident awaits me at the Basilica of Our Lady of Copacabana. I pick up the leaflet of many languages and find the famous Virgin shrine was carved by famous religious sculptor, Francisco Tito Yupanqui in 1592. I am surprised to find that she is also known as The Dark Virgin of the Lake, as well as the more respectable, Patroness of Bolivia. Why a Dark Virgin - does she have a secret past?

Miraculous connection

 I find out that, ‘The Virgin’ is adored for a series of local miracles; and when I  dare to touch her stone dress in a state of reverence, my mind spins back in time, to that moment when my fingers touched the rock at the site of the of the crucifixion in Jerusalem. The connection feels real and my impression is reinforced in the streets outside, as I blink away the blinding light to discover from my guide book, that the town has recreated its own journey of the Stations of the Cross. As I walk through the town’s homage to the Via Dolorosa, my mind pierces through its geographical restraints, and these two distant places seem to merge, across time and space. 

The point of creation

They say that there is only one spot worthy of an Andean sunset; that should be experienced from a small boat, afloat on Lake Titicaca. To the Incas, the lake is believed to be the point of all creation. In Incan mythology, the god Viracocha arose from the lake to create the sun, stars and also the first people. This place was incredibly important to them, and so I head off in the direction of the lake’s most significant island, the Isla del Sol (Island of the Sun), home of the Incan sun god Inti, who rescued the world from darkness and fear, according to a popular myth.

Sunset on Lake Titicaca

Watching the sun set over the Isla del Sol, turns out to be a more magical experience than I could ever have imagined. I watch in awe as the sun bathes the sacred Andean mountains in bright colour; its fiery reds and burnt oranges blazing through the darkening sky, shimmering and reflecting their mystical light into the darkest depths of the lake; before melting into the horizon.

Isla de la Luna

Travelling back to the shore of Copacabana, I am guided by the light of the moon, past the sacred, ‘Isla de la Luna’ (Island of the Moon), the legendary home of the Inca goddess Mama Quilla. During Incan times, the island was home to a society of chosen women, known as the ‘Virgins of the Sun,’ who lived and worked like nuns. They wove clothes made from alpaca wool and performed ceremonies dedicated to the sun. I wish I could have seen them.

The sunken temple

As my boat reaches a sacred place surrounded by the mountains, I pause for a while, gazing at their intense reflected beauty. I want to preserve this perfectly peaceful moment, experiencing it fully, with my mind and soul. I close my eyes and drift off to sleep, the water lapping gently under the boat; until murmured voices invade my dreams, from the temple in the depths of the lake; they are visitors from that sacred place which Inca spirits return to, after death. I listen to their many stories of life in Copacabana; tales of farming, fishing and festivals, and traditions passed down from one generation to another.

Life and Copacabana

When I wake it is already light and in the distance I can see the town shaking off its slumber. It is already the day of the festival, the ‘La Virgen de la Candelaria’, and it’s now time prepare for the most special event of the year! I feel the hum of activity, vibrating from across the water. It rouses me from my lethargy; the steady beat of its Latin heart, echoing on the breeze. It may seem stranger than fiction, but on this mysterious lake, I swear I can hear the exotic voice of Copacabana, calling out my name…

Innsbruck - Austria

There is nothing quite like the initial frisson of excitement you experience, when you visit somewhere new! I had travailed to Austria before, but had not visited Innsbruck; and having traveled by car from lovely, quiet, Kitzbuhel, I was ready to energy you experience the energy from this vibrant city.  Innsbruck was certainly no disappointment, with its stunning architecture, its wonderful museums and classical, cultural vibe.

Up until this point in time, I would never say I had a favorite museum as there are some wonderful places around the world. But I must admit that I have rarely been as impressed with a museum as much as the Tiroler Landesmuseen (Tyrolean Folk Art Museum). On the ground floor the hand crafted exhibits of dolls houses and miniature theatres are amazingly intricate. There is also an interesting section of traditional Tyrolean costume. Upstairs, there is a display of early photographic equipment and cameras. You can take a trip back in time, visiting the wooden interiors of old Innsbruck homes, lovingly recreated from the originals, and, not to be missed, there are the visiting exhibitions.

During my visit the visiting exhibition was of cultural and theatrical masks. There were some very dramatic exhibits and the psychology behind the display, "Behind the Mask", explored the change individuals undergo whilst wearing a mask; it raised interesting questions such as 'is the mask a form of deception? Or can it be used to express hidden motivation and desires?' The viewer becomes engaged in an exploration of different realities: its message multi – layered. ‘What is revealed? What is concealed?’

The museum’s star attraction, for me, was hidden by a heavy wooden door inside the beautiful courtyard. At set times the door would be locked and a lady appeared, delivering an exciting interactive presentation about the life and legacy of Emperor Maximilion. Inside one of the internal rooms, there was a huge, old, globe with ships and star installations circling around it. The history presentation was dramatic and exciting, giving a real sense of this historical figure and the achievements of his life time. We were all totally enthralled!

After the interactive display the group moved on to the Innsbruck Court Church, connected to the courtyard of the museum, where we visited the stunning mausoleum of Roman Emporer Maximillian1, whose aim in life was to make an' “Eternal Memorial” for himself. From the first sketches by Gilg Sessseisschrieber (German artist and bronze sculptor) in 1502, it took 80 years to complete, and it is surrounded by 28 larger than life bronze statues of the emperor’s ancestors: the sculptures showing an impressive example of 16th century artistic development from late Gothic to Renaissance and Mannerism.

Unfortunately, after his painstaking project was finally completed, the emperor was not interned in this tomb when he died!  He was buried in the  Castle Chapelat Wiener Neustadt, south of Vienna. The mausoleum has now been beautifully restored to its original condition and a visit to the Tiroler Landesmuseen is very highly recommended!

Innsbruck: St. Anna's column

Innsbruck : Old Town

Background: Goldenes Dachl (golden roof) 

Tyrolean Folk Art Museum

Behind the Mask: (a happy marriage?)

Innsbruck Court Church

The Cenotaph of Roman Emperor Maximilian1,

 For museum information visit http://www.tiroler-landesmuseen.at/page.cfm?vpath=index