Vienna - the european capital of music and culture

Vienna is well-known for its cultural life; between the 18th and the 19th centuries it was the musical capital of the world and the home of many famous composers, including Haydn, Mozart, Beethoven.

Beside that Vienna is host to many major international organizations, such as the UOPEC.

Culture
Art and culture have a long tradition in Vienna, including theater, opera, classical music and fine arts. The Burgtheater is considered one of the United Nations and est theaters in the German-speaking world alongside its branch, the Akademietheater. The Volkstheater Wien and the Theater in der Josefstadt also enjoy good reputations.

Vienna is also home to a number of opera houses, including the Theater an der Wien, the Staatsoper and the Volksoper, the latter being devoted to the typical Viennese operetta.

Museums
The Hofburg is the location of the Schatzkammer (treasury), holding the imperial jewels of the Habsburg dynasty. The Sisi Museum (a museum devoted to Empress Elisabeth Amalie Eugenie of Austria) allows visitors to view the imperial apartments as well as the silver cabinet. Directly opposite the Hofburg are the Kunsthistorisches Museum, which houses many paintings by old masters, ancient and classical artifacts, and the Naturhistorisches Museum.

One of the methods that many travellers use to prepare for their journey is to read about the area. The following are books recommended for travellers planning a trip to Vienna:

Guidebooks:
Lonely Planet Vienna by Neal Bedford and Jane Rawson. This comprehensive travel guide provides travelers with information on everything that there is to do in and around Vienna.
Eyewitness Guide Vienna by Stephen Brook.
Rough Guide Vienna by Rob Humphreys.
Cadogan Guide Vienna, Prague, Budapest by Mary-Ann Gallagher, Sadakat Kadri, and Matthew Gardner. This travel guide is good for visitors who are planning to explore not only Vienna but also the surrounding areas.
Vienna’s 25 Best by Fodor’s. This book is excellent for travelers visiting Vienna for only a short period of time because it describes the best of the best thing which should not be missed on a Vienna trip.
Only in Vienna: A Guide to Hidden Corners, Little-known Places and Unusual Objects by Duncan J. D. Smith. This richly illustrated off-the-beaten-track guide to more than 80 fascinating and unusual sights will appeal to explorers and independent travellers.

Vienna things to do :
Freud Museum
Hundertwasser
Grinzing & HeurigeSpanische
Hofreitschule & Lipizzaner
1.Bezirk / 1st district
UNO-City
Hofburg
Kapuzinergruft
Ringstrasse


Vienna's transportation

airport information

Vienna International Airport (VIE) is a modern and compact terminal at Schwechat, just outside the city limits. Flights arrive from all over the world. A new terminal (T3-Skylink) is being erected featuring 17 new airbridges boosting the comfort for arriving and departing passengers. Opening scheduled for 2012.

www.viennaairport.com

Buses (Vienna Airport Lines):

Buses connect the airport with the two main railway terminals, Wien Meidling and Wien Westbahnhof, as well as the city centre [Schwedenplatz/Morzinplatz] and UN complex in around 25-35 minutes and costs €6 single. Moreover, there are buses departing for destinations South of Vienna like Mödling or Baden.

Urban Rail:

The Vienna S-Bahn (commuter train) line S7 easily links the airport with

the city featuring many stops in different districts. All trains stop at Floridsdorf, Traisengasse, Praterstern, Wien Mitte and Rennweg, with almost all trains stopping at the branch line stations to the airport. The regular fare is only €3.60. If you are in possession of a valid pass for Vienna, you only have to buy a supplementary (outer zone) ticket costing €1.80. The pass or tickets, probably purchased at the airport, must be validated when boarding the

train! Present pass and supplement ticket to the train attendant in order to receive a smile (or not).

Trains TO Vienna leave 18 and 48 minutes past the hour and either go to Wien Südbahnhof (Ostbahn) or Floridsdorf. Trains bounding for the airport leave, for example, Wien-Mitte Station at 17 and 47 past the hour and display "Flughafen Wien" or "Wolfsthal". These trains can also be boarded/left at other stops which are stated above. The departure/arrival times logically differ then. Travel duration between Wien-Mitte and Vienna Airport is 26 minutes.

Source:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vienna
http://www.tripadvisor.com/Tourism-g190454-Vienna-Vacations.html
wien-vienna.com

"The Pearl of The Mediterranean" Alexandria, Egypt

Alexandria is a city to explore at random.
It's as important to enjoy the atmosphere as it is to see the sights.

The second largest city in Egypt, Alexandria, known as "The Pearl of the Mediterranean", has an atmosphere that is more Mediterranean than Middle Eastern ; its ambience and cultural heritage distance it from the rest of the country although it is actually only 225 km. from Cairo.

Some places that you can visit,

Al Horreya opens into a beautiful green area known as the Shallalat Gardens, which was once the fortification of Bab Rosetta. But in 1905, Alexandria created a garden area here with waterfalls and the only Alexandria cistern which can be viewed. This cistern is an example of those which once dotted Alexandria providing fresh water to her inhabitants.

The Corniche

The Corniche is doted with Casinos built on stilts and rows of beach huts. The avenue here did not always exists, for until the 20th century, the areas remained fortified by a five mile long wall with towers which had protected the city since the 13th Century. In the early 1900s, a strip of land with a width of about 100 years was reclaimed from the sea, and the area became popular with beach goers. That is no longer the case, but it remains a lively area of Alexandria.

On the western end of the Corniche near Silsila where the New Alexandria Library is being constructed is the Shatby Tombs which are said to be the oldest in Alexandria. Nearer the San Stefano area across the tram tracks is also the Royal Jewelry Museum.

The Mahmudiya Canal

A walk along the Mahmudiya Canal brings one face to face with the working class and industrial districts of Alexandria, and is pleasant along the old paved road bordered by the canal and sycamore trees. South of the Greek district along the canal is the Antoniadis Gardens, which seep with history. Here, the poet Callimachus lived and taught, and in 640 AD, Pompilius prvented the King of Syria from capturing Alexandria. But less then a year later, Amr Ibn el-As camped here, before taking the city. The well known Water Traffic Circle is also in the area.

Here one finds the Zoological Gardens, the small Museum of Natural History and the Fine Arts Museum in the Moharrem Bey area, and a Rose Garden. The beautiful public gardens extend into the surrounding area where the Antoniadis Palace is located, and there is even a nearby Roman tomb.

El-Muntaza

Muntaza Gardens

This area along the coast about 15 miles east of Alexandrias old district along the Corniche is where many of the modern Alexandrian hotels are located, as well as one of the elegant heritage hotels. Khedive Abbas II built the Salamlik as a residence. Here also is the magnificent Montaza Palace.

The Gates of Alexandria

Source:
http://www.touregypt.net/alexandria/
http://www.memphistoursegypt.com/Egypt-Shore-Excursions/Alexandria-City-Sightseeing/id_prod7

Omega 3's Benefits

Omega 3 Benefits – 7 Research Proven Results

Omega 3 benefits are pretty darn astounding.

And making sure you're getting these exciting omega 3 benefits in your life is probably the 2nd most important thing you can do for your health. (We'll get back to the 1st most important thing later.)

Research studies are published almost weekly where the scientific community discovers more and more amazing omega 3 benefits.

If you haven't already been swept up in the net, here are seven proven benefits you should know about.

1. Freedom from pain and inflammation. Omega 3 fish oil fatty acids, particularly EPA, have a very positive effect on your inflammatory response. Through several mechanisms, they regulate your body's inflammation cycle, which prevents and relieves painful conditions like arthritis, prostatitis, cystitis and anything else ending in "itis."

2. Better brain function and higher intelligence. Pregnant and nursing mothers can have a great impact on the intelligence and happiness of their babies by supplementing with omega 3 fish oil with DHA. For adults, fish oil improves memory, recall, reasoning and focus. You'll swear you're getting younger and smarter.

3. Feeling better with much less depression. Making you smarter is not all that fish oil does for your brain. Psychiatry department researchers at the University of Sheffield UK, along with many other research studies, found that fish oil supplements "alleviated" the symptoms of depression, bipolar and psychosis. [Journal of Affective Disorder Vol. 48(2-3);149-55]

4. Lower incidence of childhood disorders. Just to show how fish oil fatty acids leave nobody out, studies show that children (and adults) with ADD and ADHD experience a greatly improved quality of life. And those with dyslexia, dyspraxia and compulsive disorders have gotten a new lease on life thanks to fish oil supplements.

5. Superior cardiovascular health. Fish oil's DHA, EPA and DPA have also been proven to work wonders for your heart and the miles and miles of arteries and veins that make up your cardiovascular system. They help lower cholesterol, tryglicerides, LDLs and blood pressure, while at the same time increasing good HDL cholesterol. This adds years to your life expectancy.

6. Protection from heart attack and stroke. When plaque builds up on arterial walls and then breaks loose, it causes what's known as a thrombosis, which is a fancy way of saying clot. If a clot gets stuck in the brain, it causes a stroke and when it plugs an artery, it causes a heart attack. Research shows fish oil fatty acids break up clots before they can cause any damage.

7. Reduction of breast, colon and prostate cancer. And finally, fish oil has been shown to help prevent three of the most common forms of cancer – breast, colon and prostate. Science tells us that it accomplishes this in three ways – by stopping the alteration from a normal healthy cell to a cancerous mass, by inhibiting unwanted cellular growth and by killing off cancer cells.

So you can see why learning more about fish oil is possibly the 2nd most important thing you can do for your health. Do you have any idea what the 1st most important thing is?

That's right. It's time to put this knowledge to work and start eating more fish and regularly taking pure fish oil supplements. That's the only way to be sure you're getting all the benefits of omega 3 fish oil.

Source:
http://www.omega-3.us/omega-3/omega-3-benefits/

Omega 3's Source

The best source of omega 3 fatty acids is probably fish. Japanese men, who consume twice as much fish and seafood as men in the United States have much less likely to have atherosclerosis, which leads to heart disease. Coldwater oily fish such as salmon contain the most omega-3 fatty acids, but other wild-caught fish such as trout are good sources of omega-3s as well.

Fish oil contains two important fatty acids called docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) and eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) that are the forms of omega-3 fatty acids that your body uses.
Algal oil, which is made from ocean algae, is the one plant source of omega 3 fatty acids that contains pre-formed DHA. Algal oil is usually sold as a dietary supplement.

Flax, walnuts, pumpkin seeds, soy and canola oil are all good sources of alpha-linolenic acid. Alpha-linolenic acid is also an omega-3 fatty acid, but it is slightly different than EPA and DHA so it must be converted into one of those forms to be used by the body.

Research shows that flaxseed may help to prevent cardiovascular disease too, but the evidence is not as strong as it is for fish oil. Flax is the best plant source of omega 3 fatty acids because it contains large amounts of omega 3 fatty acids along with fiber and phytochemicals called lignans. Canola oil is another great choice. It is better for cooking than flax oil because flax oil is destroyed by heat.
Many people prefer to avoid fish because they don't like the taste or because of the potential of mercury contamination found in some fish. While you can increase your dietary omega 3 fatty acid intake by adding plant oils to your diet, fish is preferred. People who do not want to eat fish on a regular basis can take fish oil supplements.

<sub>Sources:
Arterburn LM, Oken HA, Bailey Hall E, Hamersley J, Kuratko CN, Hoffman JP. "Algal-oil capsules and cooked salmon: nutritionally equivalent sources of docosahexaenoic acid." J Am Diet Assoc. 2008 Jul;108(7):1204-9.

http://nutrition.about.com/od/askyournutritionist/f/efa_sources.htm</sub>

Komodo Island - Seven Wonders Finalists

A small island of 280 km², Komodo Island is located between Sumbawa Island and Flores Island. Almost entire Komodo Island are hills and barren, except palm tress and woods.


This island is famous with its giant lizards which are considered the last of their kind remaining in the world today. To many modern naturalists, East Nusa Tenggara is particularly interesting because of its unique species, called the komodo dragon (Varanus komodoensis).


The local people call the animal: ora. It is a giant lizard with 3-4 meters length whose ancestors roamed the earth about half a million years ago.

Komodo lives by eating carcasses of goats, deer, and even of its own kind. The only human population in this island live in fishermen village. They also breed goats which are used to feed the giant lizards.

Komodo is protected by law and though they are considered harmless, it is advisable to keep them at distance. Komodo is now preseved at national park. The national park is home to a number of rare species, deer, and wild pigs, which are prey to the lizards.

To see komodo at day time, baits have to be set in the hinterland where local guides are needed. The sea surrounding the island offers sea life, crystal clear water, and white sandy beaches. The only accommodation available is simple guest houses in the fishermen village. It is advisable to carry food supplies.

The best time to visit the island is between March and June, and between October and December. Komodo Island is accessible only from sea. From Labuan Bajo, visitors can travel to the island by boat about 3-4 hours.

we can make " Dragon Walk " to see the famous Komodo Lizard.
Begin the diving activities in Pantai Merah or the area close by.

While most visitors enter Komodo National Park (KNP) through the gateway cities of Labuan Bajo in the west of Flores or Bima in eastern Sumbawa, the departure point for your trip is actually Denpasar, Bali.

	By Land:
	The gateway cities of Labuan Bajo and Bima are connected to Denpasar, Bali by overland buses.
	By Sea (ferry):
	Travel time: approximately 36 hours The gateway cities of Labuan Bajo and Bima are also connected to Denpasar, Bali by inter-island ferry. Contact the Indonesia Sea Transportation Company (PELNI) at Jalan Raya Kuta No. 299, Tuban - Bali (Tel: 0361 - 763 963) to reserve a seat on the KM. Tilong Kabila, which departs Benoa Port, Bali bound for Bima and Labuan Bajo Benoa-Bima-Labuan Bajo Fortnightly (every two weeks) on Saturdays: 09.00-20.00 (next day). One-way ticket (as of 10/6/06) from Rp. 143,000.00 - Rp. 435,000.00 Labuan Bajo-Bima-Benoa Fortnightly (every two weeks) on Thursdays: 08.00-11.00 (next day). One-way ticket (as of 10/6/06) from Rp. 143,000.00 - Rp. 435,000.00 Note: the ferry schedule and ticket prices may change with or without prior notice
	By Sea (live-aboard):
	Komodo National Park is serviced by a wide range of live-aboard boats, with return packages to Komodo National Park from a variety of departure points, including Bali, Lombok, Bima and Labuan Bajo Prices (as of 10/6/06) are ranging from USD 230.00 - USD 295.00 / person / night.
	From Gateway Cities to Komodo National Park (KNP)
	You can easily organize a shared boat charter by local boat from either ports at Labuan Bajo or Bima (Sape) to the two major points of access in the Park: Loh Liang (on Komodo Island) or Loh Buaya (on Rinca Island) Charter price (as of 10/6/06) - excluding meals, KNP entrance fee etc: Labuan Bajo: KNP: Rp. 750,000 - 1,500,000 per boat / day Bima (Sape): KNP: Rp. 1,500.000 - 2,000.000 per boat / day Note: the charter prices may change with or without prior notice

By Air: Indonesia Air Transport (IAT) Depart : Everyday DPS - LBJ : 10.00 – 11.30 LBJ - DPS : 12.00 – 13.30 Price: Y CLASS : IDR 751.000 H CLASS : IDR 696.000 Q CLASS : IDR 641.000 (NON REFUND TICKET) Trans Nusa Airlines (TGN) Depart : Everyday DPS – LBJ : 10.00 – 11.50 & 13.00 – 14.20 LBJ – DPS VIA BMU (BIMA) : 12.05 - 12.35 BMU-DPS : 12.50 – 13.45 LBJ – DPS : 14.35 – 15.15 Price Y CLASS : IDR 761.000 L CLASS : IDR 651.000 M CLASS : IDR 541.000q

So, prepare and enjoy your trip... ;)

Part or or all of this text stems from the original article at:

http://www.petra.ac.id/eastern/ntt/komodo.htm

http://travelguide-beautiful-indonesia.blogspot.com/

http://www.komododragontravel.com/tour_29_-7D-6N-Komodo-Leisure-Diving.html