Coming up starting on May 19th, 2014 I’ll be guiding a ten day adventure across Israel with Birthright Israel and Israel Outdoors. During the trip, I’ll be working with two other expert staff members – Allison Bell and Asher Drimmer, traveling with a group of 40 guests. Years ago, I actually participated as a guest in this exact same trip, and it’s an exciting honor to now have the opportunity to lead it. Israel Outdoors calls this itinerary “Israel By Bike“, but it’s a lot more than just that. We’ll be biking, hiking, swimming, sightseeing, and relaxing all throughout Israel, experience as much as the country has to offer. In addition to the many activities and locations we’ll be discovering, we’ll also be developing our own personal relationships with both the land and the people of Israel. During our trip, we’ll be joined by a few members of the Israeli Defense Force, to learn firsthand what their lives are like living in Israel and serving in the military – a unique opportunity to make deep connections.
Here’s a quick outline of what we’ll be up to during our ten day itinerary:
Meet and greet at Tel Aviv’s Caesarea – The beachside amphitheater
Traditional vibes while staying at a Kibbutz Guest House in the Galilee
Exploring the mystical city of Tzfat
Biking along the winding banks of the Jordan River
Rafting the upper Jordan River
Ascend the Golan Heights
Hike down the lush Nahal El Al Canyon on the Golan
Winetasting at the Golan Heights Winery
Exploring the Jordan Valley
Tour of the Old City’s legendary Jewish Quarter
Personally experiencing The Western Wall
Shopping at the Mahane Yehuda market
A group night out on Jerusalem’s Ben Yehuda pedestrian mall
Secluded stay at the Dead Sea Hotel
Sunrise ascent to Masada via the Snake Path
Hike to the desert waterfalls at Ein Gedi
Bike along the chalky desert trails of Mount Sodom
Floating time along the beaches of the Dead Sea
Camel trekking and traditional Bedouin hafla dinner feast
Explore Nahalat Binyamin artists market and street festival
Bike the Burma Road trail in the Jerusalem foothills
Crawl through the archeological caves at Hirbet Midras
Walking tour of historic Jaffa on the Mediterranean shores
…. and much much more.
We’ll be able to squeeze all of this into a quick ten day timespan with a bit of crafy planning, a dedicated transportation and security team, and our expert and experienced Israeli liasion. Israel Outdoors has been running this trip for years, and they’re the absolute best in the business – a pleasure to work with them.
Next up in preparing for the trip now that the itierary is set, everybody’s airline tickets have been locked in, and everything is in motion is to pack! Shortly I’ll be posting my quick packing list of what I’m brining with me on the adventure. I’ll be traveling ultralight, and ultraversatile to adapt to the variety of situations we’ll encounter while traveling. Stay tuned!
Interested in your own adventure in Israel and the Middle East?
Promoting an emerging destination can be a tough sell, but up-and-coming tourism promoters learned winning strategies at this year’s New York Travel Festival. NY1’s Valarie D’Elia filed the following report.
Travel shows usually exhibit their fair share of tried-and-true destinations.
At the New York Travel Festival, an up-and-comer on the consumer circuit, a couple of places that might be considered a tough sell were trying to get a foothold in the tourism game.
… Adventure travel consultant Jeffrey Donenfeld describes what about Serbia appeals to the adventurer. “The sell in my eyes with Serbia is, this is way off the beaten track in undiscovered, pristine and beautiful country and location that is just begging to be explored,” he says.
The Illustris Project just released their preliminary results, and it’s nothing short of incredible. Although their simulation is massively complex, I particularly love checking out the fantastic graphics they’re able to generate from the data, available on their media page.
Motivation & Big Ideas
The standard model of cosmology posits that the mass-energy density of the Universe is dominated by unknown forms of dark matter and dark energy. Testing this extraordinary scenario requires precise predictions for the formation of structure in the visible matter, which is directly observable as stars, diffuse gas, and accreting black holes. These components of the visible matter are organized in a ‘Cosmic Web’ of sheets, filaments, and voids, inside which the basic units of cosmic structure – galaxies – are embedded. To test our current ideas on the formation and evolution of galaxies, we strive to create simulated galaxies as detailed and realistic as possible, and compare them to galaxies observed in the real universe. By probing our successes and failures, we can further enhance our understanding of the galaxy formation process, and thereby perhaps realize something fundamental about the world in which we live.
The Illustris project is a set of large-scale cosmological simulations, including the most ambitious simulation of galaxy formation yet performed. The calculation tracks the expansion of the universe, the gravitational pull of matter onto itself, the motion or “hydrodynamics” of cosmic gas, as well as the formation of stars and black holes. These physical components and processes are all modeled starting from initial conditions resembling the very young universe 300,000 years after the Big Bang and until the present day, spanning over 13.8 billion years of cosmic evolution. The simulated volume contains tens of thousands of galaxies captured in high-detail, covering a wide range of masses, rates of star formation, shapes, sizes, and with properties that agree well with the galaxy population observed in the real universe. We are currently working to make detailed comparisons of our simulation box to these observed galaxy populations, and some exciting promising results have already been published.
To apply, I wrote two essays speaking to my interests in the program, as well as issues facing the region. Here’s what I had to say:
Arctic Summer College Application Essays – Summer, 2014
1. Please describe your personal interest in the Arctic Summer College, its relevance for your career, how you intend to contribute, and how you intend to use the knowledge/network acquired through the course.
Participating in the Arctic Summer College curriculum this summer will act as integral educational opportunity and building block of my aspirational career working within the Arctic field support and stewardship industry. I strive to support the efforts of conservators, advocates, and scientists in promoting sustainability and cooperation in the Arctic region.
Previously, I worked with the United States Antarctic Program at the Amundsen-Scott South Pole Station. While on the station, although my primary position was as a cook, I took every opportunity I could to get involved with the various science, research, and conservation groups on station. I was lucky enough to be able to contribute my time to a number of science teams, as well as work as the station’s Tour Guide. As a field science assistant, I participated first hand in building and maintaining complete science and industrial equipment, and realized the extensive amount of energy and skill is required to maintain efficiency, effective operations at the poles. As tour guide, I conveyed to international tourists, adventurers, and community leaders my enthusiasm for the work being done, and the ecological and social imperative to properly protect the unique and valuable antarctic environment.
I look forward to furthering my polar studies, and supporting sustainability and responsibility in the arctic. I intend on using my knowledge and network acquired through the course to identify productive and responsible roles for both myself as well as other emerging professionals in the arctic. Additionally, I plan on discussing my experiences both with Arctic Summer College, as well as my further experiences in the arctic on my personal website as well as other relevant publications, to further support our goal and message of sustainability and cooperation in the arctic region.
2. What steps do you think are most critical to sustainable development, environmental protection, and/or international cooperation in the Arctic? Please describe an innovative yet practical development in your field that can positively impact the policy landscape.
More than anything, I feel that broad spectrum, international transparency and communication is critical for ensuring efficient and effective management of the arctic region. With so many international interests, and unique cultural, sociological, scientific, and ecological assets in this unique environment, it will take a truly international cooperative effort to maintain sustainable development and environmental protection well into the future.
In addition to robust communications, I believe that a progressive long-term arctic management plan will be critical for maintaining focus on the primary goals, and ensuring long-term execution of both strategic vision and continued multinational cooperation.
In my field of work, an innovative, practical, and effective development has been the constantly increasing use of digital media and communications to reach out to students, scientists, supporters, and the public to build widespread support and awareness. In my own personal work, I’ve been able to connect with more than 600 people per day through my website, exposing my readers to the human details of life in the polar regions, and the harsh realities faced in these remote, fragile environments. I’ve witnessed firsthand the positive impact my content has made on people, and I know a number of my readers who have been inspired by my experiences enough to get directly involved in support and stewardship groups themselves. For me, the best is receiving enthusiastic letters from readers, and being able to guide them in the direction to support ongoing and future conservation and support efforts at the poles.
As a prime example, recently I worked[1] with the BICEP2 CMB Telescope team at the South Pole. The research I assisted proved to generate groundbreaking data when the team announced[2] their papers[3] [4] earlier this year. Thanks to a well-developed digital media strategy and robust network of supporters, the team’s announcement of their extraordinary data made international headlines, and connected with people well beyond the typical scope of the project. This kind of widespread coverage is essential for maintaining and supporting projects like this, and their success underscores the role of these unique environments in critical basic, and applied research.
I look forward to continuing to learn about the issues facing the arctic region, and connecting with the community at large through arctic summer college to build mutual support for the group’s diverse scope of projects and responsibilities.
The first session of the 2013 Arctic Summer College took place on July 8, 2013, looking at Scientific Research in the Arctic. Dr. David J. Scott, Executive Director of the Canadian Polar Commission (CPC), joined Arctic Summer College Fellows as an expert speaker. Dr. Scott provided a concise overview of the work, objectives, and priorities of the CPC, discussing measures for translating knowledge into action to benefit people of the North and coordination with Canadian and international partners. (click for complete presentation PDF)
More on the course:
The Arctic region is a unique place at a unique moment in time and decision-makers have the opportunity to set a new course for expanding natural resource development and establish a model of sustainability for the global community while respecting the rights of indigenous peoples. In recognition of this tremendous window of opportunity, the Arctic Summer College brings together emerging leaders and experts to consider options for promoting sustainability and cooperation in the Arctic region.
The Arctic Summer College creates a network of emerging leaders and experts that will be brought together for 10 weeks in a series of web-based seminars (webinars) Mondays from 18:00-20:00 Central European Time from June 23 to August 25, 2014. The program aims to build a lasting, policy-oriented network of Arctic professionals to strengthen communication between peoples and nations, scientific disciplines, policy areas, and across the science-policy interface to improve governance and sustainable development in the Arctic.
Participation in the Arctic Summer College is open to applicants with ideally 2-10 years of experience in a related field, and a desire to share perspectives and seek professional collaboration with a network of peers. Applications will be accepted on a rolling basis through May 30, 2014. Applicants will be informed about the outcome of the selection process by June 6, 2014.
This past weekend, April 26th and 27th, I attended and spoke at the annual NY Travel Festival. The weekend was a productive and interesting look at the state of the Travel, Adventure, and Travel Media industry, and featured informative sessions from industry leaders including the Travel 2.0 group, G Adventures, Matador Network, and AFAR Media, among many others. A few wrapups and followups from the festival:
I appeared at the event as the resident expert on Antarctic Adventure and Expedition Travel, leading two sessions of one-on-one consulting, as well as doing featured talk on my experience living and working in Antarctica, and how future adventure travelers can make their own way to the frozen continent. If you missed my talk, you can read my entire account of Antarctica at https://JeffreyDonenfeld.com/Antarctica. Continue reading about my complete Travelogue.
Exploring Earth’s Most Extreme Continent – Antarctica.
During the ’12-’13 Austral Summer, Jeffrey Donenfeld deployed with the United States Antarctic Program to live and work at the most remote outpost of humanity, in the middle of the highest, coldest, windiest, and driest desert in the world – at the Amundsen-Scott South Pole Station, South Pole, Antarctica. Live on the station was extreme in every sense – extreme weather conditions, extremely cold, extreme science, and extremely fun. Join Jeffrey as he shares critically acclaimed photographs and first-person video clips shot while on station, as well as hear how YOU can make your own journey to explore the earth’s southernmost continent.
I was lucky to meet a number of great people to discuss innovative new products and services within the industry. A few standouts:
Newleyweds Mike and Anne of HoneyTrek spoke on Extended Honeymoon Travel, and told the awesome story of their 675-day round-the-world honeymoon. “We’re Mike & Anne Howard, two American newlyweds who thought a ten-day honeymoon wasn’t nearly enough to celebrate a new life together. With a little bit of savings, no kids, and good health, we figured there was no better time to travel than now. So we quit our jobs, rented our apartment, and set out on a 675-day honeymoon around the world. Using Anne’s background as a magazine editor and Mike’s as a digital media strategist and photographer, we started HoneyTrek.com to share our journey of love, life, and adventure.”
Bruce Poon-Tip of G-Adventures presented as the keynote speaker, sharing his story, as well as a collecting of entertaining and tightly produced promo spots. “The 2014 New York Travel Festival welcomes Bruce Poon Tip as the headline speaker for the Matador Network Speaker Series. In 1990, Poon Tip founded G Adventures, a global adventure travel company dedicated to providing travelers with award-winning experiences and authentic accommodations. In a session entitled “Transformation in Travel,” Bruce will discuss lessons from his experiences as an entrepreneur and sustainable travel advocate, as well as his new book, Looptail.” – NY Trav Fest official schedule
Marc Orenstein and Adam Rapp of Clothing Arts demoed their stylish and functional Pick-Pocket Proof P^cubed Travel Pants and Shirts. The travelwear is built with a variety of hidden zippers and buttons, providing secure storage for travelers, while offering modern and versatile style. I was particularly impressed with the feel of the quick-dry nylon fabric used in their line of button-down shirts – the fabric feels and moves like fine cotton, but is actually synthetic and dries quickly. I’m yet to actually field-test their gear, but am looking forward to getting it out there and publishing my notes soon.
Also during the festival, and chronicled via Twitter – FOLLOW ME
https://twitter.com/Jeffzilla/status/460137579753373697
https://twitter.com/Jeffzilla/status/461294627450941440
https://twitter.com/Jeffzilla/status/460911083604443137
https://twitter.com/Jeffzilla/status/459839454048698368
https://twitter.com/Jeffzilla/status/460453485503602689
https://twitter.com/Jeffzilla/status/460123444558835712
https://twitter.com/Jeffzilla/status/460099627740839937
https://twitter.com/Jeffzilla/status/459850894600056832
https://twitter.com/Jeffzilla/status/459529371863486464
Next up in the circuit of NY-based travel, adventure and outdoor life events is Outdoorfest, taking place May 30 – June 8 2014.
A festival to bring out the adventurer in all of us, OutdoorFest provides a space for the outdoor community to share our passions. We’ll spend ten days kayaking on the Hudson, running through natural forest, and photographing wildlife, all within city boundaries. Through these events, we can connect with others who share our interest, discover a new sport, and champion healthy, active lifestyles.
Recently I had the opportunity to meet with G Adventures Bruce Poon-Tip, as well as Global Purpose Specialist Eduardo Cartaya. After a number of inspiring converstaions, I submitted my application to work with them at a Chief Exploration Officer – a G Adventures guide. For your interest, here are my brief answers submitted online. I’d love any comments of suggestions for these questions in comments.
What motivates you to want to lead tours? More specifically, why do you want to lead tours for G Adventures?*
I want to lead tours for G Adventures for the opportunity to inspire my peers with exploration, wonder, passion, learning, and connecting. World discovery for me is a deeply personal process, and I look forward to sharing my passion, and the passions of the world with others.
Why do you think people take group tours rather than travel on their own? Why would they choose G Adventures trips?*
To explore the world in a new, interesting way, provide context to their explorations, connect with other, both within the group and surrounding it. Variety, wonder.
What would be the best part of being a G Adventures leader?*
To share my passion and enthusiasm with others, and provide an incredible experience.
How can you, as a leader, promote and encourage day to day Sustainable Tourism on your tours?*
As a NOLS LNT Outdoor Educator, by being an educator and champion of the local area, ideals, and goals of sustainable tourism.
What is the worst thing you could imagine happening on a G Adventures tour, and how would you deal with the situation?*
Injury and scattering of the group. Situation would be dealt with by clear communication and a well-defined plan of action
Of all the places in which you have traveled, which has had the biggest impact on you and why?*
After 4.5 years of putting all of my time and effort into pursuing my ultimate dream of living and working in Antarctica, I finally made it happen and worked at the Amundsen-Scott South Pole Station, Antarctica. The entire journey was an incredible experience, and opened my eyes to life in the middle of the highest, coldest, windiest and driest desert in the world, at the most remote outpost of humanity. Truly an incredible experience.
You are one week into a five week tour and several passengers have approached you in regards to the hygiene of one particular passenger. After having a brief discussion with this passenger’s roommate, you discover that the passenger in question does not bathe, did not bring any toiletries with him/her, and believes that jumping into the sea once a week is sufficient cleansing of the body. What do you do and how would you approach this client?*
Ask them for their thoughts on their own personal hygiene, and how they see their hygiene fitting into the group. Discuss with them calmly and respectfully the overall group dynamic and expectation, and find a mutually agreeable solution.
You are 3 days into a 3-week tour; you and your passengers are waiting for a bus. You recognize a daypack that belongs to your group that has been left unattended on a bench. You try to determine to whom it belongs. There is no nametag and upon opening the front pocket, you discover a bag of marijuana. Is this a problem? How would you deal with it?*
Yes, it’s a problem. This situation would be dealt with by clear communication about the expectations of the group and local laws, while avoiding unfairly singling anybody out or creating an uncomfortable dynamic within the group.
If you have received $1000 to pay for accommodation, and you need to pay for 3 double rooms at $35 USD per night and 2 single rooms at $25 USD per night, for 7 nights total, how much money will you have left over?*
You’d be $85 short.
You are beginning a trip and have not yet met your group. Due to an unexpected natural disaster, you have just learned that the itinerary will have to change with an added cost of $300 per client. How would you prepare your opening remarks? How would you expect the group to react, and how could you participate in resolving the situation in order to have a successful trip?*
Again, clear communication about the realities of the situation. Keep things upbeat, direct, and honest about exactly what is happening. I’d expect the group to react negatively to a price increase in general, but understanding of the situation given the clear communication, and I’d expect to resolve the situation by working with the guests to makeup for the difference and/or provide reasonable accommodation otherwise.
You and your group have just arrived into town during a major street festival. You have to weave your group through cobblestone streets filled with exploding firecrackers, water balloons and inebriated locals dancing away. Upon arriving at the hotel, you discover a passenger is missing. It is a concern as she has had little travel experience, is 50 years old and does not speak the local language. If she has held on to the detailed trip itinerary that you gave out at the beginning of the tour, she will know the name and the phone number of the hotel. What do you do?*
I’d first ensure the safety of the remaining group, and make sure they’re in a safe, collected situation can be made comfortable while the other group member is found. If I had adequate human and communication resources, I’d establish a search plan and make sure she would be found, while keeping the rest of the group in communication, and aware of the plan, backup plan, etc. I’d also be sure to stay in communication with the home base, as per procedure.
Describe a time, perhaps linked to a challenging task or assignment, when things were difficult and you were working under pressure.*
While ski mountaineering in the Northern Tetons, a member of our group got sick and frustrated living in a snow cave, and decided to desert the group. We resolved the situation by communicating clearly, and providing him the support he needed to ensure his safety.
Describe a recent experience of working with other people. What did you contribute and what was the outcome?*
At the Amundsen-Scott South Pole Station, Antarctica, I worked hand in hand with 150 other people on the station to successfully support the science and building operations of the National Science Foundation.
Give an example of a situation where you solved a problem in a creative way.*
While trekking in northern Myanmar, I was held and questioned by a number of members of the rebel militia. We resolved the problem by sitting down for a beer and discussing everything, coming to terms, and all having a good time in the end.
Describe how you handled a situation where you had to initiate and complete a task in the face of resistance from others.*
During a Mass Casualty Incident drill at the South Pole, I had to work with a large team of emergency responders to successfully stabilize, transport, and treat a group of sick, unruly patients.
Tucked away in the mountains of Austria you’ll find the tiny town of Hallstatt. Hallstatt and its population of less than 1000 residents rest on the southwestern shore of the Hallstätter See. In addition to the picturesque view of the town on the lake, tourists can see the world’s first salt mine, enjoy nearby skiing, take a trip to the World Heritage Museum, and visit the Dachstein ice cave. Though this village is very small, there are a few different hotels and restaurants to choose from.
Bonjour Records
There’s not a huge selection of CD’s, but you’ll want everything: mixes created by Parisian fashion labels like Kitsuné and acoustic cover compilations, including one featuring Nirvana’s ‘‘Smells Like Teen Spirit.’’ 24-1 Sarugaku-cho, Shibuya-ku; 011-81-3-5458-6020.
Load up here on tenugui, traditional dyed cloths printed with images of everything from Mount Fuji to musical notes. Locals use the fabrics for wrapping wine bottles and presents (for the constant gift-giving), and they can easily double as handkerchiefs and napkins. 23-1 Sarugaku-cho, Shibuya-ku; 011-81-3-3780-0182.
Franz Joseph Land
Franz Josef Land, Franz Joseph Land or Francis Joseph’s Land (Russian: ????? ??????-??????, Zemlya Frantsa-Iosifa) is an uninhabited archipelago located in the Arctic Ocean, Barents Sea and Kara Sea, constituting the northernmost part of Arkhangelsk Oblast in Russia. It consists of 191 islands, which cover an area of 16,134 square kilometers (6,229 sq mi), stretching 375 kilometers (233 mi) from east to west and 234 kilometers (145 mi) from north to south. The islands are categorized in three groups, a western, central and eastern, separated by the British Channel and the Austrian Strait. The central group is further divided into a northern and southern section by the Markham Strait. The largest island is George Land, which measures 2,741 square kilometers (1,058 sq mi), followed by Wilczek Land, Graham Bell Island and Alexandra Land.
Eighty-five percent of the archipelago is glaciated, with large unglaciated areas being located on the largest islands and many of the smallest islands. The islands have a combined coastline of 4,425 square kilometers (1,709 sq mi). Compared to other Arctic archipelagos, Franz Joseph Land has a high dissection rate of 3.6 square kilometers per coastline kilometer. Cape Fligely on Rudolf Island is the northernmost point of the Eastern Hemisphere. The highest elevations are found in the eastern group, with the highest point located on Wilczek Land, 670 meters (2,200 ft) above mean sea level.
The archipelago was first spotted by the Norwegian sealers Nils Fredrik Rønnbeck and Johan Petter Aidijärvi in 1865, although they did not report their finding. The first reported finding was in the 1873 Austro-Hungarian North Pole Expedition led by Julius von Payer and Karl Weyprecht, who named the area after Emperor Franz Joseph I. The islands were annexed by the Soviet Union in 1926, who settled small outposts for research and military purposes. Norway rejected the claim and several private expeditions were sent to the islands. With the Cold War, the islands became off limits for foreigners and two military airfields were built. The islands have been a nature sanctuary since 1994 and became part of the Russian Arctic National Park in 2012.
Marina bay sands hotel Singapore
https://www.designboom.com/weblog/cat/9/view/14514/marina-bay-sands-hotel-singapore.html
marina bay sands complex consists of three hotel towers connected by the magnificent sands skypark. designboom’s editors had the great opportunity to stay and test out the newly opened hotel. with over 2,500 rooms and suites, it is the biggest hotel in singapore. the sands skypark with pool is built at the height of 200 meters.
its lush, landscaped gardens are home to 250 trees and 650 plants and offer a total of 12,400 square meters of space –
big enough to fit three football fields. hotel guests have the exclusive use of a 150-meter infinity swimming pool,
the world’s largest outdoor pool at that height.
In the city of Beppu in Japan’s ?ita Prefecture, you can visit Hotel Jzauruss, a love hotel modeled on Jurassic Park. Finally, a place that can accommodate all of your Dennis Nedry roleplaying fantasies. You didn’t say the magic safe word, ah-ah-ah!
For those of you unfamiliar with the concept of a love hotel, it’s a place where you and a special friend (or friends!) can go for some discreet canoodling. But in the case of Hotel Jzauruss, when you pull up its garish, dinosaur-bedecked ramp, you’re telling the world that YOU ARE FUCKING HERE for some Tyrannosaurus sexing. Oh baby, pour that water on my hand to demonstrate chaos theory in a totally facile way! Tear my arms off like I’m Samuel L. Jackson!
Neuschwanstein Castle (German: Schloss Neuschwanstein, pronounced [n????va?n?ta?n], English: “New Swanstone Castle”[1]) is a nineteenth-century Romanesque Revival palace on a rugged hill above the village of Hohenschwangau near Füssen in southwest Bavaria, Germany. The palace was commissioned by Ludwig II of Bavaria as a retreat and as a homage to Richard Wagner. Ludwig paid for the palace out of his personal fortune and by means of extensive borrowing, rather than Bavarian public funds.
The palace was intended as a personal refuge for the reclusive king, but it was opened to the paying public immediately after his death in 1886.[2] Since then more than 61 million people have visited Neuschwanstein Castle.[3] More than 1.3 million people visit annually, with as many as 6,000 per day in the summer.[4] The palace has appeared prominently in several movies and was the inspiration for Disneyland’s Sleeping Beauty Castle[5] and later, similar structures.
The Palace of Versailles (English /v??r?sa?/ vair-sy or /v?r?sa?/ v?r-sy; French: [v???s?j]), or simply Versailles, is a royal château in Versailles in the Île-de-France region of France. In French, it is known as the Château de Versailles.
When the château was built, Versailles was a country village; today, however, it is a wealthy suburb of Paris, some 20 kilometres southwest of the French capital. The court of Versailles was the center of political power in France from 1682, when Louis XIV moved from Paris, until the royal family was forced to return to the capital in October 1789 after the beginning of the French Revolution. Versailles is therefore famous not only as a building, but as a symbol of the system of absolute monarchy of the Ancien Régime.
Many places of worship are built around relics and icons. However, most of them are not built in such precarious and dangerous locations as Las Lajas Sanctuary, which crosses a forested gorge on the border between Colombia and Ecuador.
In 1754, an Amerindian woman and her daughter found themselves caught in a brutal storm. Hiding out from the weather in the gorge, the women felt a force calling to them, and to their amazement looked up and saw the image of the Virgin Mary on the rocks above. At that moment, the woman’s daughter was simultaneously cured of her inability to hear and speak.
Shortly after the discovery was reported, a blind man wandered for ten years from village to village collecting donations to build a chapel around the image. When he returned to Las Lajas, he was able to see again. Both of those 18th century miracles inspired the creation of Las Lajas Sanctuary between 1916-1949, built around the original chapel. To co-opt the original miracle, the stone image on the cliff forms the back wall of the modern sanctuary, making a gorge-spanning bridge and church combination necessary.
Although the site was dedicated a minor basilica by the Catholic Church in 1954, non-religious visitors can still enjoy the dramatic setting and neo-Gothic architecture. The massive church sits 150 feet high over the river below, and its turrets contrast elegantly with the green cliffs and cascading waterfall, which are visible from the arched stone bridge.
Langkawi Sky Bridge
Background: This curved pedestrian bridge is 2,000 feet above sea level at the top of Mount Mat Cincang in Malaysia. Tourists who want to walk across the 400-foot long structure must ride up to it in a cable car.
Why It’s Innovative: Set above the treetops, the Langkawi Sky Bridge is one of the highest elevated single-stay bridges in the world. The deck is less than 6 feet wide and its curved shape gives travelers a panoramic view of Langkawi, an archipelago of 99 islands. Each end is fitted with triangular observation decks.
In Budapest – Hotel Gellert and its thermal baths — an art nouveau gem that first opened in late 1918. Construction of the Gellert began in 1911 and was delayed due to the First World War. Its glorious baths reflect the grand style of the Austro-Hungarian empire.
Thanks to Joanne Goodman for this info!
Király Bath or Király fürd? is a thermal bath that was first built in Hungary in the second half of the sixteenth century, during the time of Ottoman rule. The bath and its neighborhood have since become part of the consolidated city of Budapest.
Found via: https://www.cntraveler.com/interests-ideas/best-places-to-get-naked
Percolate helps brands create content at social scale. Some key features include:
– Track events and plan content at the intersection of brand voice and cultural relevance
– Employees never miss a social moment with the Percolate Photographer app
– Create branded images at the speed of social with the Percolate Image editor
Recently a blog reader wrote to me about my photos taken with the Sony RX-100, as well as my creative process. Here’s the exchange:
Hi Jeffrey
I have done quite a lot of looking at people's photos using the RX100 and I can say without exaggeration that yours are the best I have seen by far. I find it incredible that all the photos in this post
https://www.jeffreydonenfeld.com/blog/2013/07/traveling-through-australia-new-zealand-southeast-asia-and-japan-summer-2013/ were all taken with this camera.
Great work and a pleasure to view, thanks for all your hard work posting these images.
If I could ask one question, you state shoot RAW and then process, do you find a lot more dynamic range in the RAW shots and do you have any quick fix settings for to get you in the ball park or do you process each one according to taste?
I took this camera to China and got some of my favourite photos with it but generally shot JPGs. Do you process each photo or just the keepers?
-Simon
Simon –
Thanks for checking out my pics, I’m glad you liked them. You might also be interested in these items –
In general I find I have better flexibility when shooting in RAW – both for the dynamic range, as well as range and purity of white balance. Additionally, for archival purposes I like to have as pure of a file as possible. In many cases my old images have been found by people wishing to purchase them or use them in media productions, and the ability to re-edit to suit a client’s needs has proven useful. Memory is cheap nowadays, and it’s trivially easy to carry a pocket of SD cards around and just keep ripping away full blast.
I don’t apply any blanked develop settings, and usually quickly apply basic copyright info to the metadata on import (I use lightroom, latest version whatever that is). I then usually do one or two passes of stars to edit down to what I feel like is a good workable set, and then edit those. As I’m editing, I’ll sometimes eliminate another 1/4 of the photos that I don’t feel like I can get totally there with an edit. From the other 3/4 that get edited, I upload those to flickr, and then usually embed about 1/2 of them in the related blog post.
Generally with coherent sets of photos (like for a given trip or event), I’ll try to keep the general feeling and editing style of each photo similar, but I do them each individually by hand. Occasionally I’ll cut/paste develop settings from one to another, usually if the images are very similar, or I’m showing a progression and want to focus on that instead of the distinctness of any one photo.
Let me know if ya have any other questions, and send me a link to your photos from china!
The New York Travel Festival aims to reinvent the consumer travel show for tech-savvy, immersive travelers. We go beyond booths and brochures to provide interactive experiences to people who see travel as a means of experience, not just escape. NY Trav Fest brings together a unique blend of consumers, media and industry to mingle and discuss the future of travel together.
Antarctica Talk and Slideshow, 3-4pm: “Surviving the world’s highest, coldest, windiest and driest desert — Antarctica” ADD TO CALENDAR
Exploring Earth’s Most Extreme Continent – Antarctica.
During the ’12-’13 Austral Summer, Jeffrey Donenfeld deployed with the United States Antarctic Program to live and work at the most remote outpost of humanity, in the middle of the highest, coldest, windiest, and driest desert in the world – at the Amundsen-Scott South Pole Station, South Pole, Antarctica. Live on the station was extreme in every sense – extreme weather conditions, extremely cold, extreme science, and extremely fun. Join Jeffrey as he shares critically acclaimed photographs and first-person video clips shot while on station, as well as hear how YOU can make your own journey to explore the earth’s southernmost continent.
A little over a year ago, I had the extraordinary opportunity to work with scientists John Kovac, Jon Kaufman, Howard Hui, and others at the Amundsen-Scott South Pole Station, Antarctica (summary of my experience living and working at the south pole) on the BICEP2 and KECK Array Microwave Telescopes. Learning about how the telescopes worked, as well as the science behind what they were doing directly from the scientists involved was a great opportunity, and I was happy to be able to make my small contribution to the project.
“Researchers from the BICEP2 collaboration today announced the first direct evidence for this cosmic inflation. Their data also represent the first images of gravitational waves, or ripples in space-time. These waves have been described as the “first tremors of the Big Bang.” Finally, the data confirm a deep connection between quantum mechanics and general relativity.”
Astronomers are announcing today that they have acquired the first direct evidence that gravitational waves rippled through our infant universe during an explosive period of growth called inflation. This is the strongest confirmation yet of cosmic inflation theories, which say the universe expanded by 100 trillion trillion times, in less than the blink of an eye.
The findings were made with the help of NASA-developed detector technology on the BICEP2 telescope at the South Pole, in collaboration with the National Science Foundation.
“Operating the latest detectors in ground-based and balloon-borne experiments allows us to mature these technologies for space missions and, in the process, make discoveries about the universe,” said Paul Hertz, NASA’s Astrophysics Division director in Washington.
This morning, they announced their first set of results from Bicep2 at the Harvard Center for Astrophysics:
From Sean Carrol:
Monday morning: here are results! First, the best fit to r, the ratio of gravitational waves to density perturbations:
Coming up starting on May 19th, 2014 I’ll be guiding a ten day adventure across Israel with Birthright Israel and Israel Outdoors. During the trip, I’ll be working with two other expert staff members – Allison Bell and Asher Drimmer, traveling with a group of 40 guests. Years ago, I actually participated as a guest in this exact same trip, and it’s an exciting honor to now have the opportunity to lead it. Israel Outdoors calls this itinerary “Israel By Bike“, but it’s a lot more than just that. We’ll be biking, hiking, swimming, sightseeing, and relaxing all throughout Israel, experience as much as the country has to offer. In addition to the many activities and locations we’ll be discovering, we’ll also be developing our own personal relationships with both the land and the people of Israel. During our trip, we’ll be joined by a few members of the Israeli Defense Force, to learn firsthand what their lives are like living in Israel and serving in the military – a unique opportunity to make deep connections.
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This past weekend, April 26th and 27th, I attended and spoke at the annual 
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Recently I had the opportunity to meet with 
