wonderaday

From Sao Paolo to the Beach

In fact Sao Paolo is not an interesting city, rather dull, with skyscrapers that were built 20 years ago and look disgusting today. There is no sea here either, you will have to get there by plane or helicopter. About 400 helicopters fly over the city making 70 thousand flights a year. Let's fly by one of them right now.

In Sao Paolo they build special overpasses for buses.

And the bus doesn't meet any traffic jams.

Famous favelas where robbers and criminals live.

Even police is afraid of coming here.

Some chemical plant

Port

Ferries

Stadium surrounded by houses of the rich.

via zyalt

Tokyo Showroom: Concept Cars of the Future

So, the 42nd Tokyo showroom. It's hard to show everything but it doesn't mean it makes sense to show nothing. Let's look at least at all cars that will undergo serial production. Concept cars will hardly be produced even in small serial numbers, they are needed for development of perspective technologies in different spheres - from hydrogen engines to interactive driver's interfaces.

The doors that open up seem to be trendy.

Inspiring Japanese Nissan Juke

Advanced Tourer of Subaru

BMW also likes the idea of doors opening up. They realize it in BMW i8 concept. The car reaches 100km/h for 4/6 seconds at the maximum speed of 250 km/h.

Another German manufacturer Mercedes shows its concept - F125. (220km/h for 4.9 seconds).

A-class concept car and still has no name.

Volkswagen NILS - 1 seat electric car. Max. speed - 130 km/h, 100 km/h is reached for 11 sec.

Many companies design such tiny 1-2 seats cars. They are convenient for magalopolises. They would let us to minimize traffic jams. American Chevrolet shows 2 wheeled EN-V.

Japanese Daihatsu demonstrates Pico - 2 seats electric car that stands somewhere between motorcycles and little cars. Max. speed - 50 km/h.

The similar concept from Suzuki is called Q-Сoncept and is intended for domestic trips not further than 10 km from home.

3 seats concept Micro Commuter from Honda is one of the largest in this class. Instead of one wheel there are two joysticks for both hands.

There were many cars of such kind at the exhibition.

Honda believes that steering wheel may remain in the past. They use joysticks for AC-X and EV-Ster concepts. Hybrid AC-X positions itself like a family car. Fuel consumption - 0.9 l for 100 km.

EV-Ster is an electric cabrio car with fuel distance of 160 km.

Toyota pays more attention to design. Fun-Vii concept. On the body sides are screens that let change the color by a single pushing the button. Also various images may be displayed on the body.

Another car from Toyota developed together with Subaru. This car will soon go to serial production.

Its nearest competitor from Subaru again - Subaru BRZ has a similar engine, dimensions, and even look.

Lexus shows almost serial concept Lexus LFA. 4.8 l engine, 560hp, max. speed 325 km/h, the car will be made only in Japan and will cost more than 0,5 million dollars.

Design of a Tokyo University called Eliica. Developed in 2004 it was an electric car with 8(!) wheels. It's max. speed was 370 km/h, acceleration up to 100 km/h for 4.11 seconds.

Among other university designs we have to notice NATS EV-Sport Prototype 01, it's fully electric with 120 km fuel distance.

Another interesting design was shown by SIM-Drive company where electric engines are built in the wheels. Max. speed 150 km/h, acceleration to 100 km/h for 4.8 sec.

Electric sports cabrio Teewave Air. 147 km/h. 11 sec acceleration up to 100 km/h. The car was mainly made of plastic - it was the main idea.

Another plastic product T-Brain from Toyota company.

Concept cars are not always expensive sports ones. Japanese company Isuzu shows how a truck of the future may look like. T-Next concept.

Another Japanese company Hino, also producing trucks, exhibits Hino eZ-CARGO - a cargo bus for carrying cargoes at small distances.

Race hybrid cabrio GR MN Sports Hybrid Concept II and a ceremonial limo FS Hybrid Concept designed by Kanto Motors, included in Toyota Group.

Vehicles from Daihatsu. 4 seats FC ShowCase may be called the most stylish at the showroom.

Mira e:S of the same company. Cheap and saving.

Daihatsu - D-X model. 64hp, looks like a nice race vehicle.

Ken Okayama design agency shows its rather old design K.O 7 Spider. 2 seats, 2 litres 4-cylinders engine, 240 hp.

Awesome hybrid of a car and a motorcycle. The product of Campagna Motors - T-Rex 14R. 197 hp, max. speed 240 km/h, acceleration up to 111 km/h for 3.92 seconds.

via pokemoshkin

One Flight Over Europe

Some pictures taken during the flight over Europe. On the photo above - Barcelona.

Do you see the central square Glòries Catalanes of Barcelona? With that blue thing nearby? It is Agbar Tower.

Airport of Barcelona in the morning.

Before the landing in Portu. Shade of the plane on the clounds.

Bridges of Barcelona are popular places of interest. One of them was built under the project of Eiffel.

The Mediterranean Sea

The Alps

Traffic in the sky over Europe is rather dense.

via protchenkov

La Loma Cemetery In Manila

La Loma cemetery was founded by Spaniards in far 1884 being the oldest in Manila.

Dwelling houses are right behind its wall.

This church at the entrance to the cemetery. Local cemeteries are all identical so not too interesting, this one, however, is different at least in color.

There are many people here, and they came not to take care of the graves, they just come here every day, especially children.

Some burial vaults are rather big

The whole mansion, but it's rare here.

The gravestone dated the19th-beginning of the 20th centuries. Looks very neat.

In some years here will be local Angkor Wat.

On some graves it's written - "expired", what can it mean? But some of them have been removed, expired rent?

The main place of interest here is surely St. Pancras church, cause there are nearly no old churches here - some of them were destroyed by earthquakes, others - by the Japanese in WWII.

Pole at the entrance

via cheger

Welcome to the Opel Museum

Let's look at beautiful cars. One of the biggest Opel museums is situated on the territory of the Opel plant in Russelsheim. Here they present all models of Opel cars, and all concept cars that the company prepares for automobile shows.

Opel Kadett 1936

4/8PS with 4 cylinders engine usually called «Doktorwagen» (Doctor's car) evaluated for 3950 marks.

Reliable and not so expensive

Mass - 525 kg. It was ideal for doctors.

Opel 4 PS, 1924, called "a frog" or "tree-frog" for the green color. It was very famous.

2 millionth Opel Kapitan 1956

Opel Kapitan, 1951.

Opel Olympia

Opel Olympia cabrio, 1935-40

Opel Olympia Rekord Caravan (1953–57)

Chrome parts are covered with gold

Next generation of Opel Kapitan was called a "keyhole" for the shape of rear lights. 1958

Opel Kapitan 1959 was the most successful

All cars are in a working order

The white - Opel Admiral A, the red one - Rekord C Cabriolet

Rekord 1965

Rekord 1976

1975 (!), a very beautiful concept car was presented in Geneva. Opel GT/W Genève

Opel Eco Speedster, 2003, was equipped with 1.3 litres engine, it set 17 world records in fuel consumption economy among diesel cars!

In 1928 Fritz von Opel set a speed record on this rocket car reaching the speed of 238 km/h.

Waiting for restoration

Brütsch Mopetta 1956-1958

The whole collection of concept cars of last years.

Opel Frogster was shown in 2001. It may turn from a roadster to pickup.

Corsa Spider of the early 80s

Concept car Opel Insignia Concept, 2003

2005

Serial Opel GT

2004, Geneva showroom - Opel Trixx has an interesting design.

The millionth bicycle was produced in July, 21st, 1926.

via zyalt

English Mood In Pictures

Heart warming pictures from England. Simply enjoy!

Phone booths are the symbol of England!

English houses are like clones.

Godiva

Native Englishmen are not afraid of hard work

English tea maybe bought in such beautiful boxes.

Car boot market

Traffic circle

English women wear even brighter clothes

Super building in Birmingham

The facade is made of aluminium discs

The bridge unites the parking with a trading mall.

Bull made of sweets

Serious bull

For the hungry

The guy has found the way to earn

Football fan

Speeches in public is frequent - this guy is telling about the Bible.

Stylish youngsters

Who's there?

The names of those who contributed to development of Coventry

Abandoned castle not far from Coventry

Great Britain has motorcycle ambulance - what a great idea!

Coventry from above

Glamorous car

If your friend or relative is having a holiday, congratulate him/her like this!

via virako4a

Taj Mahal - the Beauty of Grief

The whole complex is surrounded by the wall made of red stone. At the entrance there are three queues: for men, women and VIP. Real Taj Mahal is always better than on photos or in movies. The huge building made of white marble surrounded by four minarets. On the walls are Koran suras beautifully written with black marble. The minarets are a bit inclined outside, they say it's done to prevent them from falling on the building in case of an earthquake.

We are not sure how it can be explained but the most beautiful buildings of India are not palaces and temples, but mausoleums, cenotaphs whatever they are called, made in honor of the dead. Taj Mahal is one of them. Beloved wife of Shah-Djahan, the Moguls emperor, died while giving the birth to their 14th baby. He was so stricken with grief that he decided to build the mausoleum that will be the best in the world, the one that would make the sun and the moon cry.

20 thousand of Indian workers were building the mausoleum for 22 years. This number doesn't include sculptors from Bukhara, calligraphers from Syria and Persia, mosaic workers from South India and other masters from Turkey, Iran, Afghanistan... Instead of ordinary bamboo, the scaffolds around the mausoleum are of bricks. They were so huge that taking them to pieces took years. The legend says that the shah let everyone who took bricks might never return them back, by the morning no scaffolds remained. To carry the marble blocks they made a 15 km mount.

However the shah had no time to enjoy the mausoleum. Soon after the construction was ready his son put him to prison in the nearby fortress. So he was staring at the monument from the prison windows. When he died he was buried next to his wife in Taj Mahal.

One may get to Taj Mahal through these gates.

Pool at the mausoleum

In all its splendor

Upper part

Patterns on the marble

Along all the building - semiprecious stones patterns. The needed piece was cut out, and the hole for it in the marble to insert it. So they did thousands of times.

Vertical patterns - suras from Koran made with black marble.

The closer you come the more details you may notice.

On the left is an active mosque. On the right is an identical building.

Such a picture every tourist takes coming here!

via vnarod

The White House Is Ready For Christmas Holidays

Here we are going to show you how the White House is preparing for the Christmas holidays. The main slogan this year: «Shine, Give, Share». All in all the White House has 37 Christmas trees including the official fir pine 5,5m high that stands in the Blue Hall. The decor of the main fir tree is devoted to the soldiers who have merits before the country.

The main tree in the Blue Hall of the White House.

Christmas decor in the Entrance Hall

The main tree is decorated with medals and orders.

In the libraryL plastic dog Bo of Obama

Windows decoration

Cross Hall

Bo decoration

Photos, postcards and medals as decorations of the fir tree.

Gingerbread house that weighs 400 pounds with a marchpane dog named Bo in the official dining room of the White House.

Purple Heart military decoration

Christmas tree decorations in East Garden Room.

Christmas cookies

Carolyn Hougland, aged 6, with other children of the servicemen, is waiting for Lady Michelle Obama to arrive in the White House of Washington.

Vermeil Room

In the Crimson Room

Many decorations have been made by the servicemen kids.

Gingerbread house in the official dining room.

Michelle Obama is showing the cookies she made together with the kids of the servicemen.

Cooking process

Christmas postcard signed by the family of Barack Obama.

Decorated ceiling on the first floor of the White House.

Michelle Obama is giving her speech to the families of the servicemen.

Decorated Green Hall

In the China Hall

Real Bo

Fir tree in the library of the White House.

Stand with postcards in the White House library.

via daypic

The Museum of Miniatures In Lyons

Here's a wonderful place in Lyons, France - the International Museum of Miniatures and Decorations.

The museum poster

Created in 1990 and maintained by a miniaturist Dan Ollman, the International Museum of Miniatures moved to the Mansion of Lawyers in 2005 to the centre of old Lyons.

The museum occupies the area of 2000 m2 and 7 storeys.

No matter how old you are, the museum won't let you indifferent. It is divided into 2 parts:

1) original items and decorations from famous movies, miniatures, masks, robots etc. generously provided by the best cinema studios of the world. The stunning collection opens the mysteries of stunts and special effects of the cinematograph.

2) Miniature copies of various places and buildings, such as bars and restaurants from different epochs, castles and hospitals, churches and shops... Real masterpieces of hard work and endurance, 100% copies of various places and domestic scenes. Both works of Dan Ollman and other miniaturists have been collected here. Though, the main part is devoted to Lyons, its constructions and symbolic buildings: Brasserie George, Saint Paul prison, Lyon Opera...

Lyons is often called the cradle of cinematograph, world-known Lumiere brothers who created cinematograph lived here in Lyons.

The Museum has exhibits from various shootings: from "Star Wars" to "Da Vinci Code". Two separate storeys of the museum are devoted to "Perfume: The Story of a Murderer" movie.

How many of the characters you know? How many movies do you recognize?

Close look

But in the museum it looks like this...

The smallest miniatures may be adored forever!

For some of them you'll need a magnifying glass.

The operating shop

Ollman himself

via toma-gramma

The City of Garbage Collectors

The labyrinth of narrow stinking streets of Egyptian city Madinat al-Zabbalin which name is translated as "the city of garbage pickers".

The problem of garbage collection and recycling has always been very acute for all megalopolises. Though in various places they have different solutions - somewhere garbage is buried, somewhere combustions plants are built. In other countries garbage is sorted out and recycled at special plants, but some nations just do not pay attention to it and live among the stinking wastes. Cairo with population of 20 million people unites two last tendencies.

Behind the official city line among Cyclopean rocks there is one of the most honoured holy places of local native Christian inhabitants - the Copts. Monastery of Our Lad and St. Simon founded back in the IX century is breathtaking and must attract crowds of tourists...

But tourists rarely come here - to get to the Monastery they have to overcome the labyrinth of stinking narrow streets. Seems only brave Japanese tourists with masks on their faces may dare to visit the holy place. Garbage here is everywhere - in the streets, in the houses, on the roofs. People live among this garbage, smell it, pasture cattle, have children and the reason is simple: garbage is their profession. From olden times local Christians have been making their living by collecting garbage in the blocks of Cairo, bringing it home and manually sorting it out: paper to paper, iron to iron, glass to glass. Later they sell it all to recycling plants. That's how they exist. At that, compared to others here, some of them don't live bad: among the shabby crumpled vans, horses and donkeys, from time to time, new neat cars may be seen.

Locals are quite hospitable and friendly: they don't mind to be photographed, however, they don't like to be photographed at work.

According to the ancient tradition: houses are built little by little: a son marries - another floor is built.

Strange additional storeys - dovecotes.

via ridus

How They Make KIA Cars?

This plant is situated in Zilina city, Slovakia. Its construction began in October 2004 and was over in December 2005. In June 2006 the plant started working in the test mode. The first car was made in December, 7th, 2006 and it was Kia cee'd. Hope it'll be interesting for you to have a look at such a modern factory.

Your future KIA car comes to the plant as such reel with sheet steel.

In the pressing shop 20 tonned steel reels turn into car body details. This process is divided into some stages. The first stage includes preparation of a "blank" for further detail formation. For this they cut a contour off the sheet, technological holes and projections of a future detail.

That's how they move along the shop.

Further on this product is put on metal racks and an electric pallet truck takes it to a press-machine.

Production of one detail takes about 20 seconds.

Moulds are changed each 30 minutes.

Detail after stamping

Then moulded details go to high-level storage racks where they wait for their turn to be welded.

The pressing shop has personnel but the storehouse is fully automated.

After the storehouse car body details go to the welding shop that is fully robotized.

About 400 robots work at the shop.

All the process happens without human participation, people only control it.

The work is well-coordinated

The robot systematically takes body elements from the mounting and sends it further, for welding.

Suddenly one door fell out of the process, the employee wrote a date and something else on it. Then it returned back. Was it defective?

Robots continue to weld bodies.

People are present only in the Quality audit area. Quality is paid much attention to, 10% of employees work in this very field at all production stages.

Through such glass galleries future cars move between the shops.

Assembly track starts here. 2/3 of all operations are fulfilled by people here.

At the assembly about 500 employees work in one shift.

Nobody looks gloomy or undatisfied

What is surprising that all models come to the conveyor. To tell one model from another, and to protect pain-and-lacquer coating, colored protective panels are put on them, definite color means one of the models.

Almost ready vehicle

To finish it up they have to assemble an engine and an undercarriage.

It comes from somewhere on the special cart.

All movements are synchronized...

And ... voila! They call it "marriage".

The last minor actions

Quality control

Then almost a ready car is completed with mirrors, glass windows, seats and other necessary things.

Windshield is being assembled

On various stages height of the car is regulated by a special lift device.

The process is finished by filling up and then the car goes to its first trial lap.

The lap is some kilometres long. The car meets different road coatings, turns, ascents and slopes. If a test-pilot decides that the car has some defects it won't be admitted for sale. If no defects are detected the car goes to the parking where it waits for further transportaton.

via escogido7

Slums of Shanghai That Will Disappear Soon

Only 150 years ago Shanghai represented an old port city with dirty streets, warehouses and opium dens surrounded by rice fields. But in the middle of the 19th century here came large western companies and the city began to change: new financial centres started to be built, banks, trade offices and embassies. Grand districts have appeared on the place of old shacks. Shanghai today is an ultra-modern megalopolis built up with huge skyscrapers, sparkling with neon signs, with modern transport, beautiful shop windows, fashionable districts. But somewhere poor blocks still remain to live, these slums are disappearing day by day under the attack of modern new-built quarters. Today we offer to have a walk along these outskirts.

The streets here are like a huge kitchen where they're cooking something all the time.

Selling and selling...

Exotic food

There's a covered market too.

Noodles are sold by weight

Slums narrow streets

Hens and pigeons for your table...

Old minibus used like a small storehouse

Balconies for drying linen

拆 - means "to be demolished", soon they will dispappear.

No slums without cats

Skooter with fur mittens

Popular game in China

From such cans they drink flower tea

via mb-world

Angkor Wat From the Helicopter

The main place of interest in Cambodia is Angkor Wat - a giant temple complex devoted to god Vishnu. We are going to have a look at it in an unusual way, from the height of a helicopter flying.

The airport of Siem Reap is very unusual.

The area of the complex is 200 hectares, it is surrounded by the 200 m artificial moat.

Someone raised upon the temple in a baloon.

Near the main temple are some smaller ones.

Roads are like vascular system

Almost all the area is used for agriculture

Flying over Tonle Sap lake - the biggest basin of Indo-Chinese peninsula

For the bigger period of the year the lake is comparatively small (2700km2) and not more than 1 m deep. During the rainy season the territory of the lake reaches 16000 km2, its depth - 9 m: so it floods nearby forests and fields.

Village on water

Fish is caught with nets

The road with houses resembles a backbone

Moorage

via sergeydolya

Gaucho Festival In Argentina

Gaucho, as wiki says, is a term commonly used to describe residents of the South American pampas, chacos, or Patagonian grasslands, found principally in parts of Argentina, Uruguay, Southern Chile, and Southern Brazil. In Brazil, Gaucho is also used to designate people from the state of Rio Grande do Sul in general.

The portrait of a typical gaucho - fist of all - headgear, usually a wide-brimmed hat or a beret, moustache, beard and long hair.

Gaucho in holiday clothes

Gaucho in casual clothes

They always have a knife worn like this, behind their backs

Belt is sometimes decorated with coins from different countries.

Gauchos wear boots or special soft shoes on their feet.

Boots spurs are not rare too

They have a lash in their hands

Gauchos mainly eat meat which they charbroil and salt

Meat is abundant, so dogs eat it too

What gauchos drink is herbal tea mate

And gauchos won't be gauchos without a horse!

Though the herd of horses is better than one horse!

Now you may recognize gaucho in the crowd! Let's test you! Whom do you see on the picture above? Right, anyone but gaucho!

The festival Fiesta de la Tradicion lasts all November, but the main event takes two days in the middle of the month, when gaucho competitions and parade take place.

On Friday and Saturday gauchos come to a huge field some kilometres away from the city where they camp down. Everything is strictly organized - marking, toilets, food.

The food, by the way, is rather tasty and cheap. Meat in San Antonio de Areca is cheaper than anywhere else in Argentina.

Fistly gauchos arranged horse races where they made swirls of dust.

Then "corrida" began, though it rather looked like rodeo. Outlaw horses were tied to poles, blindfolded and another participant sat on back of a mustang. The task of a gaucho was to stay on horse longer than others. One of them got an injury and was taken away by an ambulance car.

The most interesting began at the sunset - herds turn out. Guchos rode to the arena and showed their skills to control a herd. There were a lot of herds. 400 horses came out to the field at the same time. They were made to gallop in chains, stand in a line etc. At the end they made a breathtaking performance - hundreds of horses controlled by the gauchos raced at full speed. It was hard to understand how they managed not to trample each other in such a chaos. But it looked very spectacular!

In the evening they had fun

Pretty girls came too

Young gaucho

Kids in Argentina are like a cult!

Looks like the 19th century!

When you see an endless line of participants you cannot believe that gaucho culture has died. For one onlooker there are dozens of gauchos! All it looks so tuching and ...real.

After the festival and when all manure was taken away, San Antonio fell asleep again.

Some faces from the festival

via dmitry-saparov

Japan: Hotels Over the River

It's another hotel that may give a tourist some food and shelter. Huge dining halls with tatami - are perfect for overnight stop. A whole box of mineral water, three boxes with matches, a box of soap and many other useful things were found In these hotels. The hotel complex consisting of four buildings is located on the bank of one little flashy river. One of the buildings literally hangs over the river being the postcard of this place.

Getting to other buildings is possible through inner passages almost invisible from outside.

Everything is made in Japanese style and looks untouched as it was when the hotel worked, i.e. before 2005.

Huge dining and concert halls are situated in the two buildings of the four. Chairs are neatly placed along the walls. Some sound-recording equipment is there too.

Staircases in various buildings

Working place of the clerk.

Kitchen sanitary room

Electronic typewriters are often met in such abandoned hotels

via ralphmirebs

Majestic Cardiff Castle

At first sight Cardiff does not seem to be very old, and the medieval castle in the centre of the city looks rather like anachronism. Nevertheless Cardiff castle has been standing on its hill for 10 centuries already and does not pay any attention to the changing urban landscape out of its walls. It has seen so much in the last century - German bombing, rock concerts, annual balls of the Cardiff university... Though the walls themselves may surprise tourists indeed by their Norman restraint and posh Victorian interiors.

One may enter the territory of the castle through its massive, seemingly restored gates. A ticket costs 11 pounds - it includes a short film about the history of the castle, visit of the fortress, military museum and bomb shelters. The tower can be visited, unfortunately, only in a separate excurssion.

Here you may take photos for your favourite social network - adult and children's stocks.

Visitors are met by Welsh red dragons

According to the data that historians have, the Romans were the first who built the fortified tower in the middle of the 1st century.

After the fall of the Roman Empire, the fort had been lying in ruins till the arrival of the Normans in the XI century. The conqueror of the South Wales, Norman knight Robert Fatzhamon erected the wooden fortress here in 1091.

In the XII century the new owner of the castle (son Henry I) ordered to build a better stone fortress in a typical Norman style.

The Norman fortress has undergone not so many changes and was preserved in quite a good, almost original condition.

View at the city hall from the castle tower.

In the XV century there appeared a separate mansion on the castle territory, it became the home of the castle owners.

In the XIX century the mansion was fully restored in the Medieval style as Marquess Bute and architect Willian Burges saw it.

The brightest peculiarity of the castle became the Tower Clock decorated with arms and figurines personifying the sun and planets.

The territory was fenced in the same style, and the fence was decorated with stone animals - lions, hyenas, a pelican, a monkey, an anteater etc. (15 of them)

In the interiors they widely used wood and fresco decorations, astrological symbols and Mauritanian patterns, animal images and Bible characters' figurines.

Awesome fireplace

Wooden carved ceiling with angels and heraldry elements.

So many details in the fireplace

Grand library

Full size trebuchet

You may sit in the cafe nearby or have a picnic on the grass

Only for this wonderful place Cardiff is worth visiting!

via omnesolum

Walking Along the Rainbow

Citizens of a Danish city Aarhus have an opportunity to walk along the rainbow and see the city from a new angle, or to be more precise - in a new color. Here a new unusual round gallery was made, its walls are of various colors.

It's a covered panoramic site on the roof of the museum of modern art. The walls of this long and narrow site (52 m in diameter) are made of multi-colored glass.

According to the idea of the artist the panorama had to become the key point of the city. It had to divide the city into two sectors named depending on the color of the Olafur Eliasson's installation facing it.

Maybe soon the citizens of Aarhus will say: "We live in the yellow part of the city" or "We could hardly get from the red district to the green one today!"

The roof of the museum can be seen from any point of the city.

via ruwhitejaguar

Performing Ablutions at the Mosque of Sultan Qaboos

Grand Mosque of Sultan Qaboos is the biggest one in Oman and is a must-visit place in the capital of the country - Muscat. Here, we'll see how to perform ablutions before namaz.

This huge carpet was being woven for a couple of years inside the mosque.

Before entering the mosque you have to take your shoes off, this is the room where you leave them.

Everyone of Islamic quidance has to perform ablutions before a prayer.

First of all, they wash their hands thrice up to wrists.

Wash mouth also thrice

Clean a nose thrice

Wash hands three times up to elbows

Wash a face thrice

Moisten a head once from forehead to its back.

Wash ears once

Wash a neck once

Wash feet thrice

During the ablutions it's not recommended to waste too much water but not to save it much as well, splash water or talk with others.

via sergeydolya

Posh Hotel In the Center of the Asian Megalopolis

Langham Place Mongkok Hotel, Hong Kong.

The Asian world is notable for its hospitality and high level of service. It's fair for any budget. A splendid room on the 43th floor with a panoramic window, a pool and a spa-center on the roof, original design and branding,quite an unexpected bonus - iPhone4 in your room with installed guides in Hong Kong, navigation and free 3G with the internet access in the city!

The district where the Langham Place Mongkok Hotel is situated is a trading one, it's the very area rich in electronics markets and stores.

The design of the hotel has many interesting elements. The lobby

The room

Usually a guest is greeted by a TV set with a telephone.

"Me" style details

Why flash is needed in the room? Who can guess?

That very iPhone

If you want to get to the Disneyland, but the driver doesn't speak your native language, the iPhone well help you.

The SPA center on the 43th floor

Cooled towels after sauna

The pool on the roof!

Hotel for guys in love

From the lobby one may get to the shopping mall.

But probably the best thing in the hotel is a view of night Hong Kong.

Acoustics for the iPhone and JBL for TV

The elevator

The SPA center

via alexcheban

Flight Over the Highest Mountain Chain

These photos were taken during the flight from Islamabad to Urumqi. Maybe some of the mountain tops will be familiar to you.

Some of the tops are higher than the clouds. The Himalayas - the highest mountain chain on Earth.

via zyalt

10 Things That Are Going to Surprise You In Amsterdam

There are 10 things that are going to surprise you in the Netherlands:

Bicycles in the Netherlands is like any other transport. Everybody uses them, from baby to adult. There are few passers-by but many bicycles in the streets. Bicycle lanes are very comfortable. On one side of the street they move forward, on another side - they move back.

A car for 1 person. But can it be called a car? So tiny! No driving license is needed!

Snow white ducks

When you leave a bicycle outside, a saddle may soon get wet, so special covers are sold.

Old wood mills not only milled the flour. They grinded paints, pressed butter and lumbered.

Juice bottles wear cute hats.

There is a place with pins in Vondelpark, people pin the things lost by others here. Someone pinned this thing...

Combination of rye bread with raisins, pistachio and cereal is very cool!

The office of a popular website booking.com where people book hotel rooms is situated in Amsterdam.

Adult playgrounds

via dimoxod

In the Subway of Shanghai

Shanghai subway is the biggest one in the world (420km), everyday passenger throughput is over 7 million people. Shanghai is the third city in China after Beijing and Tianjin where subway construction was started. This is one of the newest and promptly developing subway systems numbering 12 operating lines and 5 lines being built including those which continue the operating lines. According to the long-term plans, before 2025 they plan to build 11 subway lines more and 10 lines of light rail transport in Shanghai.

Entrance, you see right here what lines it leads to.

The subway of Shanghai is quite modern, fast and cheap, all stations look neat. The design, though, is rather dull cause they use cheap materials for decoration. The subway sooner looks like some provincial trading centre. The colored lines on the glass designate color of the line the station belongs to.

In the subway of Shanghai they use the payment system depending on a distance. In September, 15th, 2005, after increase in the cost, 3km cost 3 yuans, 46 km cost 8 yuans.

In the end of 2005 they began to use the unified system of payment (before that, when people changed one line for another they had to pay additionally, because the lines belong to different companies).

All tickets are sold via automatic machines. To arrange a queue they made a fence.

To buy a ticket one has to choose the station he goes to and the system will calculate the price. The ticket is an ordinary plastic card which you have to return at the exit.

Some stations have metal detection gateways.

Excepted items

Stations resemble each other

As opposed to other subway systems in the world, in the Shanghai subway they apply upper current collection. The track width meets the European standards - 1435 mm, it lets carry cars using the railway net of the country.

The subway is properly equipped for the disabled people. On line 4 the platform is deparated from the rails by a transparent wall with sliding doors. Other lines of the subway will be soon equipped like this too.

LCD displays show ads and the name of the following station. Passengers can also hear the voice announcing stations in Chinese and English, in Chinese only it says about places of interest, stores near the station.

It's hot at the stations, but in trains they use air conditioners.

Passage underground. Everything here is of low quality, tiles are loose, many leakages.

Exit

At the exit homeless people sleep, seems nobody drives them out.

Arrows help to find a way

via zyalt

The Valley of Gingerbread Houses

Ait Bugemez is one of the most hard-to-reach but very beautiful and colorful sights in Morocco. They say it's very cold here in winter and all passes leading here sink in snow. So these photos were taken in the beginning of April.

Ait Bugemez valley is small, almost all the bottom land is occupied with crops and the villages huddle on the mountain edges.

The central settlement in the valley is Trabant

Living conditions here are Spartan indeed. No hotels, only guest houses and very plain gîte d'étape. The later are quite ascetic but very cheap - 40-50 Dh (~4,5 EUR). There are only two cafes that close very early. You may have dinner there, but you have to negotiate about supper with the owners where you stay, or cook by yourself.

In such a place a tourist may stay.

Nearly all houses in the valley are built in the traditional style from stones and huge blocks of pressed soil. Due to the brown color and painted windows they resemble gingerbread houses from afar. Though close view breaks this illusion.

Close view of Trabant

A long house with trading shops that open only during the weekly fair.

Center of the village

Small sand storms sometimes occur here.

Near the village on some hills there are tombs of honoured Muslim figures.

Cartage remains to be the main transport.

Local sheep

Many tourists use Trabant as a starting point of tracks along the mountains.

The valley that leads to Djebel Azurka mountain

They open bazzar each day in one of the valley settlements.

Parking

Though there are some vehicles, of course, too.

They trade under the temporary tents or put the goods right on the ground.

Meat rows

Sugar

Spices seller

Local dervish

Fog in the mountains

via zamkosmopolit

Ferrari Boxes of the Autodrome Mugello, Italy

In this post we visit Florence, the event called "Ferrari Finali Mondiali" — the official finale of Ferarri Challenge race.

Mugello is an Italian autodrome in Tuscany, not far from Florence. The motorway 5245 m long belongs to Ferarri company that tests its cars here.

Ferrari Challenge finale is not just a race, it's a festive occasion for Ferarri. On the territory of the motorway they arranged the whole city devoted to everything that has a Ferarri logo.

Let's peep into the boxes...

At the wheels of these cars famous racers used to perform: Schumacher, Fisichella, Raikkonen etc. These cars have been bought by rich people and ride along the motorway only several times a month, during client races.

F1 pays much attention to safety of pilots. No race car will start at a race if it hasn't undergone all necessary inspections, especially crash-tests.

Since 1996 cockpit sides have been strenghthened and raised to protect a racer in a better way. Behind the cockpit there are safety rails. It is also regulated that a pilot should have an opportunity to leave a race car in any moment not more than for 5 seconds, and to do that he should only unfasten safety belts and dismantle a wheel.

Schumacher had such a car

Race cars are being prepared for racing. It's not so easy to own a F1 car - you pay for storage and maintenance, besides, each time you want to race some circuits along the motorway you have to pay more than 20000 euros for the car preparation. The cost includes all operating supply, rubber, fuel and oils, engine starting work (it's the whole technological process!) and a lot more.

To start an engine there are needed five specialists and special equipment. Minimal temperature at which a car starts up is +90ºC.

For one weekend an owner of a race car spends more than 60000 euros. Provided he has successfully raced and hasn't been dashed out. If a car goes out of the motorway, even in the slightest cases, it is fully disassembled like a LEGO toy, cleaned and reassembled again.

Driving a sport car and an ordinary car - are two different things!

Racers of F1 wear special suits of Sparco company that withstand open flame within 14 seconds. Besides, they have to wear underwear, neck guards, shoes and gloves made of flame-retardant materials.

In F1 cars are four stroke 10-cylinder engines, not supercharged, with 3 litres capacity. Engine power - 750 hp.
Air precooling systems are not allowed. Engine average lifetime - 5000 km.

Ferrari Challenge is a mono series that appeared in 2000 and since that time it has had three series: Ferrari Challenge Europe, FC Аmerica, and FC Italy. The finale defines the best pilots of the season. They all have identical cars, of the same brand, with no special modifications.

At the starting grid, in each category, there are about 40 participants.

Adjustment of the rear spoiler. One point shifting changes tracking force on the rear axle for some kilograms.

On those days they also held races of special limited series cars - 599ХХ and FXX that may be used only on the track.

5 min before the start

via chistoprudov

Hamilton Pool - True Beauty

37 km away from Austin (Texas, the USA) there is one of the most unusual and picturesque lakes in the world - Hamilton Pool. It's unsual because it is an undergroud and ground lake at the same time. The beauty is contributed by the waterfall falling from 15m height. The lake formed thousands of years ago due to the fall of a calciferous dome fold of the underground river caused by heavy erosion. The waters of the underground river fall into the river flowing nearby - the Pedernales river which, in its turn, is a tributary of the Colorado river.

via nektonemo

Viennese Arsenal - Artillery And WWI Armoury

Viennese Arsenal is the oldest and probably the best military historical museum not only of Europe but of the whole world. It was built in 1856 at the order of Emperor Franz Joseph I. Here we present some photos of the artillery and WWI armoury.

On the picture above: 380mm siege howitzer Skoda M1916. On the wall is the picture of Albin Egger-Linz "Those Who Have Lost Their Names"

380mm Skoda loading system

8 cm Luftfahrzeugabwehr-Kanone M5/8 M.P.

Austrian truck WAF (Wiener Automobilfabrik) 1916, with the chain drive and the right wheel.

Albatros B I and models of aero-engines.

"Albatross" had been used till 1915 as a scout aircraft.

V-aero-engine "Austro Daimler" of Ferdinand Porsche construction (300hp, 1915)

Machine gun MG-07/12 "Schwarzlose" on the improvised air-defence machine made of a cartwheel. Who knows what weapon is on the right?

Cupola of Skoda system, 1894, for the gun of 80mm. It was placed in the Fortress of Przemysl, destroyed by the shell of a Russian 250mm mortar.

10.4 cm Feldkanone M. 15 - the main field piece of the Austro-Hungarian army. To the right is the prototype of an airgun mortar.

In the center is 15cm heavy field gun М15/16 Skoda, behind it is a 15cm heavy howitzer М15.

In the first row - 260mm mortar (Böhler 26cm Minenwerfer M1917) and another variant of pneumatic mortar, in the second row is a smaller mortar and a 15cm Feldhaubitze von Skoda.

On the left - a 75mm mountain gun М1915 (75-mm-Gebirgsgeschütz M1915).

Mule that served for carrying mountain guns and ammunition for them.

Mortar Skoda 24 cm Mörser M1898

via reibert

Greenwich In November

Greenwich is a special place in London. Traditionally it is called the main gates of the British capital. Here are the Royal observatory, the National Maritime Museum, the Royal Naval hospital, and of course, the Prime Meridian that made this place famous around the globe. Here, in this place, the globe is divided into two parts - the eastern and the western.

The first place meeting the tourist who came here for the first time is the Royal Naval Hospital, some kind of an analog of the Invalides Hotel in Paris.

The National Maritime museum is not far from it. There used to be a Royal maritime shelter here.

The main place of interest in Greenwich is situated on the so-called Greenwich heights at the feet of which is a wonderful park.

The architectural complex on those heights. On the left is the dome of the observatory. The Prime Meridian goes right through it.

One ticket to the observatory and the objects around costs 7 pounds and it is valid within the period of 1 year!

The planetarium with the bronze decoration. Inside they show films about space.

Astronomic objects in the garden.

On the opposite side from the Prime Meridian is such clock counting time remaining to the beginning of Olympic Games 2012. The similar clock of the bigger size can be seen on Trafalgar Square.

And here is the thing people come to Greenwich for. This place is always crowded by tourists putting their legs on both sides of the planet and embarassing the Meridian by what they have between those legs.

Cool little Greenwich truck carrying food.

Unusual clock

In the halls of the complex there is an octagonal room for astronomical researches.

Clocks are everywhere

There are many interesting mechanisms.

And even the collection of old telephones.

Models of Britich nonmetric system. As opposed to Continental Europe Britain has always been proud of all their feet and yards.

From the height of the Greenwich hill there open beautiful views. This one is a view of the famous Millenium Dome (O2 Arena).

via nasedkin

Threat of the Future? International Exhibition of Robots In Japan

The International Exhibition of Robots was held in Tokyo, in the first half of November. Designs of new generation and modern robotics examples of industrial, domestic and scientific spheres were presented there.

Industrial robots are produced by numerous companies such as Kawasaki, Toshiba, FAUNC, Nachi etc. This type of robots is considered to be the oldest one, they are intended for various routine operations such as carrying things from one place to another, welding and cutting details, painting, assemblage. Usually they represent a mechanical arm rotating to and fro with high speed. On the end of the arm is a "working organ" for grabbing items or doing various actions. The robots have cameras instead of eyes which defines subjects location, orientates their location, color and shape.

Another huge class of robots - helpers. They may look like boxes on wheels or like humans - depending on their purpose. Among them are, for example, robotic vacuum cleaners or trolley robots. These ones made by Daiwa House company may move along an office collecting dust and garbage or carry cargoes.

Hellish caterpillar mower mows everything it meets.

Other robots are intended for help at home and may be contolled remotely. The robot of Yaskawa company is positioned like a helper for lonely disabled persons or elderly people. Controlled by a person from another city it may collect things, carry them, transmit sounds and video.

The robot cleaning glass windows. The two parts of the robot are located on two different sides of the glass and kept by magnetic attraction.

Display board robot. Used for advertising.

Robot-patient of a dentist. Serves for teaching young specialists, controlled by voice; in response to orders it opens the mouth, rotates its head, informs how it feels.

Robot - training simulator of horse riding.

Robots - androids are definitely special though their purposes may be absolutely different: from scientific research to entertaining functions. Usually it resembles a human being. This female android's name is HRP-4C, it was made by the scientific group AIST. She has vivid mimic, may dance and sing.

Other android exhibited are HRP-2 and HRP-4 from Kawada Group. They can walk, do gymnastic tricks, get up without assistance, track a specified target.

Robot - actor of RoboThespian project has many talents of an actor.

Kitty Kokoro I-Fairy cannot be called an android, because it can't walk. It's a robot-teller, may speak with different voices, recognize faces and voices of others.

Each android has a control console.

Robot named Nikoto

Many universities presented their robots. They had been made manually, from improvised details.

Another cool exhibit - a prototype of future exoskeletons for improving human abilities and quality of life of the disabled people. In fact it is a booster of muscles: you are holding 50 kg of rice and don't feel tired. This model allows to hold up to 150 kg.

Serial samplers of such systems may help already today with lifting heavy things, especially to weak elderly people.

Robots-watchers have to be able to move in various localities, among debris, for example, also climb stairs and see around itself. Some of them were created to move under the water.

Little robots may be tought to do amazing thing, such as riding a bicycle!

Therapeutic robots made for communication with elderly people and children. They produce sounds, move their paws and tails, react to touches, some of them may recognize faces and voices.

Apart from the robots there were various accessories for them and programmed systems at the exhibition.

Manipulators

via ralphmirebs

China From Transport

An amazing view opens to a passenger who flies to China. Soon after crossing the border tha landscape dramatically changes - instead of boundless forests there appear millions of similar houses, thousands of warehouses, greenhouses, plants, canals, complicated roads... It rather looks like a computer game. Here in the post we show the pictures of China taken from the plane and the express train.

Industrial zone

Plants and warehouses

Every piece of the ground is marked

F1 race track not far from Shanghai

Railway

Houses, houses, houses, houses, houses, houses, houses, houses, houses, houses, houses, houses, houses.... all blocks are similar!

Houses, houses..

Station

Roads

Canal

Cattages have become very fashionable in China, they are copying Europe.

Paid road

Looking out of the express train. You may overcome kilometers and kilometers and see no empty patch, construction sites are everywhere.

via zyalt

Bring Your Kid to Disneyland In Paris!

The idea of Disneyland was born when Walt Disney visited Griffith park in LA with his daughters. He imagined the park where kids could come with parents to have a good time.

The Paris Disneyland includes some parks grouped around the castle of Sleeping Beauty, the symbol of Disneyland, and surrounded by narrow railway.

Main street crosses the park right in the middle.

There are numerous galleries and shops here, Disney characters dance and sing every evening.

From Main Street you may turn to four theme parks: the first on the left is Frontierland.

It's fully in Wild West style.

Here one may visit a haunted house...

Have a trip on the wheeled steamer MOLLY BROWN.

Views from aboard are quite unexpected.

You may also meet cowbows and Indians, shoot in Rustler Roundup Shootin' Gallery or have the fastest ride in a coal car.

The next goes Adventureland.

It's a paradise for boys and girls who like pirates mode of life. They may examine wrecked ships and a huge pirates' vessel.

They may also look for treasures in caves and sail by boat to the real pirate city.

Fantasyland is generally for young visitors. Park amusements represent scenes of popular Disney films. The castle of Sleeping Beauty is the most famous. There is a cave under the castle, it belongs to Dragon (La Taniere du Dragon).

Near the castle your child may imagine himself to be King Arthur!

To the right from the entrance is Discoveryland, the place was made specially for boys and girls who can't live without techniques, space ships and "Star Wars".

Hotel nearby

Besides, since 2002 Disneyland has been supplemented by the park of Walt Disney Studio.

Disneyland backstage, special effects of Studio Tram Tour.

Of course, prices are far from cheap, but your children won't wish to leave!

via beOholder