Things to do when you’re in England…

Currency: get acquainted with the British pound!

For historical sites and famous landmarks we recommend an excursion to Stonehenge.

Grab a pint in your local Pub.

Try some traditional British grub: Toad in the hole.

When in the capital (London): Visit the queen and have a curry on brick lane.

Watch some football in the north and share some banter with the local scallywags!

Things to do when you’re in France …

Visit the Eiffel tower and share a French kiss by the romantic backdrop.

Spend your well earned cash on designer threads in the chic boulevards and boutiques.

Try some tasty frog’s legs or tackle the juicy snails.

Spend your vacation skiing with the yuppies in the Alps.

Wine taste with friends in the fruitful vineyards.

Visit the quaint local villages and warm sandy beaches for a glimpse of tradition.

Things to do when you’re in Germany…

Begin in Berlin one of the most exciting cities in Europe.

Soak up the historical thrill of this capital.

Visit one of the many festivals, Oktoberfest is one of Germany’s finest (see yesterday’s blog).

Drink a lot of beer!

Head off the beaten track!

Eat meats, cheese and be merry…

Things to do when you’re in Italy…

Want epic? Visit Rome.

See the impressive Colosseum.

Head to Florence for some more sightseeing: Pay honor to The Statue of David and the gothic Dome.

Move on to the Venetian canals for a water bound taxi ride.

Hunt down the leaning tower of Pisa.

Find yourself lost in a world of art, history and romance as your share a plate of spaghetti.

Things to do when you’re in Spain…

Youngsters can begin the party in Ibiza, head to the party island to live out your wild side.

If you’re around in August find your inner warrior and join in with Tomatina’s tomato throwing shenanigans.

Relax on the beach with a glass of sangria!

With historical sight all over the shop you’ll be felling the cultural buzz.

Head to Barcelona for some Catalan architecture, the Gaudi buildings will blow your socks off.

Enjoy a plate of delicious tapas.

If you’re looking for something to do this September then look no further. 2010 sees the travel calendar well and truly full to the brim. This action packed months says fair well to the summer and eases us into the bitter sweet cold autumn breeze. So lest make the most of the sunshine and see what the world has to offer this week…

The last of the summer festivals!

Four of the best ways to end the summer 2010…

Notting Hill Carnival

The streets of west London will once again see its Caribbean community celebrating the annual Notting Hill Carnival. For England it’s a bank holiday Monday, so what better way to spend your day off than dancing and drinking in the streets absorbing this sights and sound of this historical event. The festival has been up and running since 1964, become a part of history and take the tube to the centre of the action, dance the long weekend away to ska and reggae and soak up the soulful atmosphere! 29th – 30th Aug 2010 (annual)

Burning Man

One of the craziest annual events going, you’ll find the worlds party animals gathering at the Nevada’s Black Rock Desert in the USA, to experience the festival of the Burning Man. This carnival sees its temporary residents dressed to impress as they set up themed camps, don their wacky costumes and scatter the seed of friendship! You’re in for a mix of art, music and film as the socializing continues into the early hours of the morning. Come and take a walk on the wild side, this is an experience not to be forgotten. 30 Aug – 6 Sep 2010 (annual)

Icarus Cup Free-Flying Festival

If you’re into extreme sports then this event is bound to put the wind in your sails. Watch the human kite’s free fall from helicopters plummeting 600 meters towards earth! This festival in the sky sees a lineup of amateurs and professionals illuminate the heavens, throughout the day you can expect to see stunts, games and shows entertaining the bewitched crown below. Saint-Hilaire du Touvet, France welcomes you to this sporting spectacular. 16 – 19 Sep 2010 (annual)

Oktoberfest

This month Munich is hosting its annual beer festival. This free beer feast can expect to see its usual crowd gather to guzzle down Germany’s finest beverage and drink the town dry. With six million visitors each year an astonishing amount of pork sausages are sizzled and scoffed down as the traditional juices flow. It’s a great place to hang out with friends and get to know the locals, watch the streets come to life as the natives prepare to entertain the masses. 18 Sep – 4 Oct 2010 (annual)

Enjoy the long days and warm nights as we see the summer sun set on 2010…

Futurist and avant-garde skyline means you’ve arrived! The city of Frankfurt, Germany is known for its international crowds, culture and tourism. Plenty to do and many things to see… We’ve found a great museum for you to visit, which will take you back to your childhood and entertain the entire family. Located in Frankfurt’s Westend is ´The Struwwelpeter Museum’ also known as ‘The Heinrich-Hoffmann-Museum’. The beautifully selected location and building displays the life works of physician/illustrator Heinrich Hoffmann. The exhibition designed for both children and adults includes the authors Illustrated and rhymed children stories from the 19th and 20th century. Visitors can join the guided tours which unravel the history of Heinrich Hoffmann’s children’s books, letters, drawings, sketchbooks and manuscript.

Heinrich Hoffmann started by writing romantic poetry, black comedies and literary works for adults. He began drawing to help with his doctoring and used his illustrations to stop his patients crying during medical procedures. He then when on to produce picture books for children, his most known entitled ‘The Struwwelpeter’. The moral of the story caught the attention of his critics ‘good little children came to good ends, and the ill-behaved did not’, this hard hitting picture book caused controversy amongst the young readers. The 1844 children’s story was written to warn children of the dire consequences of being naughty and is to date one of the most controversial children’s books ever written. The translations of his title ‘Struwwel-Peter’ translates directly to ‘Shaggy-Peter’ although the English publication chose the title of more toned down headings such as ‘Slovenly Peter’ and ‘Shock-headed Peter’. This iconic book has now been translated into 35 different languages. The most common English interpretation is by Mark Twain. The book has also gone on to inspire many illustrations and parodies.

Get dressed up as your favorite character and quiz your friends in the games room. Watch a puppet show and join in with theater performances. “The Struwwelpeter” is a grate place to celebrate a birthday party and the museum invites schools to take the guided tour. The Rare copies and translations will keep you occupied and transfixed for hours, it’s a great opportunity to take a look at this 150 year old best seller. Family fun for everyone! Stay in one of our Frankfurt apartment for groups, Apartment Bad Soden Suite in Frankfurt is ideal for a family stay. Enjoy Frankfurt’s culture in this fantastic city.

The history of ballet dates back to Italy during the 15th century when rich princes hired professional dancers to give luxurious performances that would impress their noble guests. In the 17th century choreographers in Italy, France and England strived to revolutionize ballet and create new innovative possibilities of dance techniques.

At the time, Russia was rich in national dance folklore and open to European cultural influences due to the reign of Peter the Great. This created a desirable atmosphere for the development of ballet theater, initially tought by instructors from Italy and France. One of the first ballet instructors that came to Russia was Jean Baptist Lande, whose students impressed Empress Anna and inspired her to start a ballet school in Russia. The school was opened in 1738 and directed by J.B.Lande was known as the Imperial Ballet School. More schools started opening in Moscow, as well as imperial and private theaters.

In the 18th century, Russian ballet was a reflection of the European classicism found in French and Italian ballet. However, at the end of the 19th century it was evident that specific characteristics and features were being brought to Russian ballet, differentiating it slightly from ballet practiced in its countries of origin. Russian composers started writing music for ballet for example, Onegin by Alexander Pushkin, and melodramatic ballet became the leading genre.

As Russian ballet started taking its unique form and increasing in popularity, special privilege was given to ballet performances as well as governement grants dedicated to the development of ballet. The Bolshoi Theatre was opened in 1825 and is now amongst the oldest and greatest ballet companies in the world. Russian ballet blended in with the romanticism born in Western Europe and the performances shined with splendour, eurhythmy and topnotch artistry.

Even though the original purpose of the ballet in Russia was to entertain the royal court, many theaters started to open to anyone who could afford a ticket. A seating section called a “rayok” was introduced, made up of simple wooden benches and cheap tickets so that the poorer social classes could experience the beauty of Russian ballet. This triggered a national frenzy over ballet and as more people could afford it, going to the ballet was incorporated in Russian culture.

In 1956, Russian ballet companies such as the Bolshoi Theatre performed in Western countries for the first time. Russian ballet proved to have a huge impact on the West due to the intense dramatic feeling and technical virtuosity of the Russian ballet style. Russian influence on ballet continues today, as Russian ballets and dancing styles are performed all around the world. The tradition of going to the ballet has remained prominent in Russian society, as Russians enjoy traditional ballets in major ballet companies in St. Petersburg and Moscow.

Do you want to get a taste of a true Russian tradtion while staying at one of our apartments in Moscow? Well get your nicest evening wear on for a night at the Bolshoi Theatre, where you will witness the beauty of Russian ballet!

Hello all of you! We know the blog has been a little bit abandoned lately, but we’ve been really busy getting our Facebook competition up and running. In a nutshell, we want to make these holidays easy for you and how better to do that than to offer you a free mini-vacation of 3 nights at one of our beachside destinations??

Go to our Facebook Fanpage and post your favourite Summer photo from last year, tag your friends in it and get as many “I like”’s a you can to have the chance to win our fabulous prize! The destinations you might get to visit are: Ibiza, Formentera, Mykonos, Barcelona, Salvador de Bahía, Miami and Sicily. Imagine that: spending 4 perfect days for free at one of these exotic, fun-packed cities with three more friends!

And the thing is, it’s so easy!
1. Become a fan
2. Post a pic
3. Get lots of “I like”’s
4. WIN!

Most of us are rather tight on money now, so if we can help in any way to make someone’s trip more enjoyable, why not go straight ahead with it? Come visit our Visit All the World fanpage and participate to win a free holiday!

When the SoHo neighborhood in Manhattan rose to fame in the 60s and 70s it triggered the emergance of similar trendy and hip neighborhoods worldwide – one of these can be found in Sweden´s capital of Stockholm. Stockholm´s neighborhood of SoFo is located South of Folkungagatan – one of the main streets in Stockholm´s fashionable Sodermalm district. Being one of the poorest neighborhoods in Stockholm fifty years ago, Sodermalm has transformed into the “place to be seen” as many artists and writers moved to the district several decades ago. This helped create the relaxed and layed back atmosphere that Sodermalm enjoys today, making it an attractive area for students and younger generations.

Strolling around the streets of SoFo, you will be delighted by the wide variety of restaurants, bars, cafes and art gallaries where hip artists and fashionistas sip their soy lattes. SoFo is also home to many Swedish fashion and jewellery designers such as Efva Attling, whose creative and elegant jewellery designs can be found in her store on Hornsgatan. For those of you that are on a budget, SoFo offers an overwhelming variety of second hand stores such as Beyond Retro, Myrorna and Stockholms Stadsmission.

Walking west down Hornsgatan from Slussen metro station, you will come across Hornsgatspuckeln which is home to a series of art galleries and the cultural center of Stockholm. SoFo´s hip inhabitants gather here for the openings of new galleries and feast their eyes apon the latest creations of popular artists. If you are a fan of the theater and cinema, check out whats on at Gota Lejon theater on Gotgatan or catch a movie at Filmstaden Soder cinema on Medborgarplatsen. Even though most plays are performed in Swedish, all movies are shown in their orginal versions so theres no need to worry about them being dubbed! After you are done exploring rest your feet in one of SoFo´s stylish cafes such as Muggen – famous for making the best cup of coffee in town.

Like it´s cousin neighborhood in New York, SoFo offers something interesting for everyone – from shopping for unique vintage clothing to checking out an exhibition in an art gallery. So venture out and discover the streets of Stockholm´s trendiest neighborhood, where you are bound to find something exciting just around the corner! This is why we offer you our uber-stylish apartments in Stockholm; come check them out!

Ok, this blatant allusion to CSI Miami came after seeing photos of the panoramic views you get from parasailing over the turquoise waters of this amazing city. With the psychedelic colours of the shore and the buildings flashing on the computer screen, the song immediately came to mind, along with the vision – almost a hologram – of Horatio sliding his glasses off and cracking a pun.

However, to get back on track: the Parasail Miami Beach company will give you wings and allow you to soar up to 600 feet above the sparkly Atlantic ocean where you’ll have the most unforgettable view ever: gazing down you might catch the lazy movement of a manta ray or a sea turtle swimming through the waves and a sweeping glance over the inland will show off the historic Art Deco District, the Biscayne Bay and Ocean Drive. Look at Miami in a different way, from the sky, dangling under a balloon that’ll gently carry you on the wind.

So what is parasailing exactly? According to wikipedia it’s a “recreational activity where a person is towed behind a vehicle (usually a boat) while attached to a specially designed parachute”. Of course this is a spot on definition, but rather boring. The sensations this technical description are void, nothing in comparison to the anticipation of feeling the balloon raising up slightly into the air, the speed of the boat increasing at the same rate as the tingling in your stomach, the exhilaration of finally being airborne and being pulled high up into the cloudless Miami sky. And once the adrenaline rush subsides somewhat, the breath taking view will make you gasp; if the water is calm enough you can even say dolphins, coral and pretty fish swimming below you.

Did you know the first parasail happened in 1961? A Colonel Michel Tournier tied a parachute to a tractor and drove down the muddy fields in France. Two years later the Pioneer Parachute Company began manufacturing them and actually coined the term “parasailing”. Since then it’s a sport that has rapidly increased in popularity – it’s the ideal child born of combining waterskiing and hand-gliding to allow you to feel as free as a bird and relax into the ride.

And how better to see Miami’s skyline? As mentioned previously, whilst skimming the white crests of the waves and once high up in the sky, you’ll be able to see the famous art deco buildings; the bright colours of which are an ode to the daunting task Miami undertook to transform from a mangrove swamp into an attractive city where tourists flock season in and season out. This orange, pink and yellow district contains the largest concentration of 20’s and 30’s resort architecture in the world! And when you’re confronted with the beauty and contrast of the colours, shinning like beacons across the water, remember that they are the result of a fabulous fusion of cultures and movements: ancient Greek, Egyptian and Mayan decorative motifs, Machine Age sensibilities and Cubist paintings all contributed to Art Moderne, as Art Deco was known before.

If you can’t wait to be floating through the air in the warm Florida climate, your eyes catching on the shocking hues of the city’s buildings, then we can make life easier for you: book one of our apartments in Miami and remember, as The Who sing in CSI: “I know there’s a place you walked, where love falls from the trees…”. Welcome to Miami!

The marvelous city of Edinburgh is packed with many creepy stories you will hear during your stay there; ghosts, ghouls and poltergeists, this city is packed with haunted places and scary legends, especially in the Old Town where gruesome stories of plagues and body snatching are a dozen a dime. You’ll easily find guided tours that cover Scottish history, graveyard tours and murder mysteries.

Many companies will offer you ghost tours around the city, revealing Edinburgh’s darker history and bringing you to the scariest places ever. Just think about cannibalism, witchcraft, poltergeists, grave-robbers…

Costumed guides will provide a backdrop to the darkest history of Scotland and a guided tour of the most actively haunted locations in the world. They definitely will take great pleasure in describing the brutal punishments and the more gory details.

To have a unique view of the vaults, we recommend you the Auld Reekie Tours, a hair-rising tour of the underground vaults, and one of the most haunted experiences ever.

The Mercat Tours also takes you to the spookiest candlelit underground vaults and in the scariest places of the city, telling you more about ghosts, ghouls … You will also learn more about the horror of the seventeen century plague.

If you prefer physical evidence of horror, you will appreciate a visit in the Torture Museum, showing the dreadful pain and death inflicting instruments from the 15th century.

Haunted guided tours are organized every day at daytime and evening, and for the grittiest one at night. Most of the tours start on the Royal Mile and last more or less an hour.

These hair-rising guided tours offer a unique take on how fascinating yet murky is Edinburgh. And after such an emotional tour, we are sure you will appreciate our comfy and centric apartment in Edinburgh.

wowBlack Light Theatre was born in China; in the days when the Chinese used candlelight to perform silhouette shows over white cloth screens. Nowadays it’s a theatrical performance style which has become a specialty of Prague, and that you shouldn’t miss for the world!

It received the name “Black Light Theatre” on two accounts: on one hand because of the ultra violet illumination and the darkened halls loaded with black material and on the other because the theatre and the stage were used for communicating “black theatre” – critical messages about the government.

There are nine black light theatres in Prague in these days; but one of the most avant-garde is WOW. As they say themselves on their website “Welcome to the world without words”: and it’s truly a remarkable spectacle, with artists dancing in costume, paired with mime and acrobatics performed by the actors on stage.

To add even more mystery to the performance, the artists are famous for keeping the black light theatre knowledge a secret, like magicians vow never to divulge their tricks. The actors wear black suits, black gloves and black masks, with only a small slit to see through. With this, they become invisible against the backdrop of blackness, and therefore are able to move big fluorescent objects around the room so they seem to be hovering in the air.

WOW is the world’s first three-dimensional theatre, where dancers and props are flying over the audience’s head, causing a 3D experience you will never forget! Apart from the actors dressed in black, WOW also employs cranes, special engines and cables to allow more freedom of movement.

During one scene, a mermaid with 200 UV fishes swimming around her appears on stage, and in another a 6 meter giant spider crosses the theatre stage. The show is also very interactive: such as the scene where six big fluorescent balls fall from the stage onto the audience, who can push them around from side to side.

From Visit all the World we are glad to offer you our splendid and comfortable apartments conveniently located in the centre of the city, assuring you a fantastic holiday at a more than competitive price. Come to enjoy Prague in only the best conditions!

Are you interested? Visit the Prague page on our website!

The Chevermeto restaurant likes to keep things traditional: every evening they roast a whole lamb over a fire to prepare “chevere”, the dish that gives the restaurant its name. But that’s not all! You can learn to learn to dance to traditional Bulgarian music and sing folk songs, whilst enjoying typical dishes, like the Yovanova Salad; a delicious recipe, invented – they say – by the Voivodi, the ancient 8th century Slavic tribes that wondered through the Balkans. This salad is made of baked peppers, strained milk with garlic and sprinkled with crushed walnuts, and is the perfect starter to begin a mouth-watering feast in this beautiful restaurant in Sofia.

However, if you really want to go Bulgarian, you also have the option to get married at the Chevermeto in a traditional wedding: the bride is “stolen” by the groom’s family and friends, her hair is plated by the younger girls and she is then made to wear a red veil. At the same time, the groom is shaved by a notable person of the community and has to prove himself to his future wife by performing feats of daring which allow him to claim her as his own and take her home. Weddings in Bulgaria are rich is symbolism and sacred in their traditions, with the aim to ensure a successful and fertile marriage. Towards the end, the bride walks towards a big copper bucket with a red flower and a white flower inside, and gives it a hard kick; the flower that goes the furthest indicates the sex of the first child: white for a boy and red for a girl.

While we’re on the marriage topic; before you say “yes”, remember that in Bulgaria everything is topsy-turvy and nodding you head actually means no!!

Rumor has it that during the Ottoman Empire, the Bulgarians were trained to switch head shaking and nodding to confuse the enemy, but the habit never changed and, to date, yes still means no!

From Visit All the World we are glad to offer you our splendid and comfortable apartments conveniently located in the centre of the city, assuring you a fantastic holiday at a more than competitive price. Come and stay in our Sofia apartments in only the best conditions!