Photo by Robert Silverwood

Beauty is in the eye of the beholder or at least that’s how the saying goes. For a few people, beauty, is a bit more relative the people perceive it. Someone might consider an abstract painting horrific, while the other might find it simply enchanting. However there’s something truly magical about something that, we can all agree upon, bridges the barrier between grotesque and serene.

A prison is a symbol of entrapment, torture and suffering. A hotel is mostly associated with comfort, relaxation and escape. Put the two face to face and you’ll find little, to no similarities, however by combining them you can achieve a certain level of beauty and bliss, that surfaces only in the weirdest of places. I mean think about it. Hotel + Prison, Prison + Hotel. I guess inmates would love to serve their time in hotel, but about travel guests lodging in a prison? Here’s 3 of the world’s weirdest, but at the same time beautiful, prisons converted into hotels.

1. Four Season Hotel - Istanbul, Turkey

Maybe the most famous jail house turned luxury hotel is the 65-room Four Seasons Istanbul, which up until 1969 was the Sultanahmet Jail, a detention center for writers, journalists, artists and dissident intellectuals awaiting trial at a nearby courthouse in central Istanbul.

The building’s exterior of Turkish neo-classic architecture was maintained, while contemporary glass additions were created to connect the series of buildings that frame an open courtyard, adding natural light to the hotel’s interior. This hotel offers an atmosphere of personal attention and ease that is unprecedented in Istanbul.

More at http://www.fourseasons.com/istanbul/

2. Breakwater Lodge - Cape Town, South Africa

Once a 19th century prison, the South African former notorious correctional facility Breakwater Lodge, is now a vibrant tourist location. This 1859-built structure with castle-like ramparts on the glitzy Victoria and Alfred Waterfront in the heart of Cape Town, is the country’s first jail-turned-hotel.

More at http://www.breakwaterlodge.co.za/

3. Malmaison - Oxford, UK

If an inmate of Her Majesty’s Prison in Oxford were to pay a return visit to his former clink today, he might come away wishing he’d committed his crime 40 years later. The castle-like walls, built for William the Conqueror in 1071, remain; as do the three-inch-thick steel doors in the cell blocks. But the prison’s name has been changed to the Malmaison and conditions have improved dramatically. The House of Correction gym features has state-of-the-art exercise equipment, and high tea, not corporeal punishment, is served up in the visitor’s room.

Back in2005 the famous Malmaison hotel chain turned the oldest prison in Britain into one of the classiest boutique hotels in the county. Quite a makeover. Instead of changing the old look, the designers created a jail house theme by keeping the wrought iron stairwell and many of the original jail bars and bare brick walls. Of course, the designers also added a modern touch and vibe to the retro, creepy theme. A soft mood lighting and original pieces of art are just a few additions. The dining area is now a chic brasserie with a menu featuring steak tartare and fillet of sea bass, and the old cells feature plasma TVs, heated slate-stone bathrooms, plush velvet curtains and fully stocked mini-bars.

More at http://www.malmaison-oxford.com/

4. Liberty Hotel - Boston, USA

Oh, the irony. The Charles Street Jail, in Boston, was one of the countries most infamous prisons, dating from the middle of the 19th century. It started it slow decay as prison, in the mid 20th century, before finally closing its doors at the beginning of the 1990’s. But from the ashes, a gorgeous new 298-room hotel was raised. Opened in September 2007 after a $150 million renovation, 18 of its rooms are set within the high granite walls of the 1851-built main prison, which has as its centerpiece a towering light-filled 90-foot-high lobby rotunda.

More at http://www.libertyhotel.com/

5. Hotel Katajanokka - Helsinki, Finland

To find one of Europe’s classiest prison hotels, you must cross the Baltic to Helsinki, Finland, and check into Hotel Katajanokka, a tall red-brick structure on a narrow peninsula close to the domed Uspenski Cathedral in the center of the city. This was the Helsinki county prison for 150 years until it closed down in 2002; it’s now a 102-room boutique inn run by Best Western, with a swish bare-brick restaurant called Jailbird. Which room to book? Ask for the private cell where former Finnish president Risto Ryti was jailed by the Soviets at the end of World War Two.

More at http://www.bwkatajanokka.fi

6. Hotel Loewengraben - Lucerne, Switzerland

The Jail Hotel Loewengraben in old town Lucerne, Switzerland, functioned as a prison right up until 1998. Right about the same year it re-opened as a small, clean, unfussy boutique hotel. The rooms have bars on the windows, the doors tiny slots to push food through, and the communal areas are decorated with prison memorabilia. And just in case you missed the joke, the hotel bar is called Alcatraz. Not exactly four seasons material, but fun enough to get welcomed in the list.

More at http://www.jailhotel.ch/

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Photo by *ade

In the world of traveling, there’s always been a lot of urban myths floating around, some more true the other, while some are complete bullshit. Bellow you can find seven of the most frequently encountered travel myths.

1. If you use your cellphone, the plane will crash. Now this is has been the subject of controversy for a very long time now. It’s pretty common, before a flight begins, that a flight attendant will make a announcement insisting you turn off your cellphones, blackberries and other outside world connectible devices, because it’s believed “they interfere with the plane’s navigational systems.” First of all this is not true, scientists, for more than 25 years now, have bumped up the RF interference these devices give off, up to 100 times their normal levels, at distances of less than three feet from sensitive cockpit avionics. As expected even in these conditions nothing wrong happened. However the FFA (federal air agency) have implied a law nevertheless: it’s left to each individual airline to set policy.So although your cell phone is harmless to any plane’s integrity, a airline may still interdict them and if you resists they have the charge to prosecute and arrest you. I’d be careful if I were you about that phone call.
2. Cruise ships are all-inclusive. The reality is far from it. Cruise ships today are all about onboard revenue, meaning they’ll charge low fees for the actual fair, while making their income bulk via various expenses on the boat, like extra snacks and dinners, room service, entertainment etc. So, don’t ever think if you’ve booked a “all included cruise” you can throw away your wallet for a week.
4. If you rent a car with a credit card, you don’t need additional insurance. This is generally true, but I wouldn’t go as far as saying it’s totally full-proof. Most people when traveling and especially when in need of personal transportation choose to rent automobiles, most often with their credit cards. Thing is most credit cards also have a auto insurance policy that kicks in whenever you pay for rental with that respective card. Almost all credit card companies offer something called “secondary insurance,” which only kicks in when you’ve exhausted all the limits of your primary policy. And if you don’t have a primary policy, then you are not covered at all. Even if you are covered, check your policy limits
5. Taking the train in Europe is cheaper than flying. Although this may have applied 10 years ago, in present day this is very untrue. Nowadays air travel is not only very fast, but very cheap as well, a lot cheaper actually then traveling by train. In example On Ryanair, an off-season round-trip flight from Rome to Frankfurt can be as low as $90. By comparison, a point-to-point train ticket from Rome to Frankfurt starts at $326 each way and takes about 12 hours of travel time.
6. Recirculated cabin air on planes will make you sick. Personally I believe it to be true, although no one has any solid scientific proof. First, let’s explain what the cabin air is: Modern jet planes were designed to bring in air from the outside at high altitude. In theory, the extremely cold air (about 40 to 60 degrees below zero) is then heated by the aircraft engines and circulated into the cabin, purging the old air. But there’s a problem. This procedure costs fuel and fuel costs money, so many airlines simply recirculate the air already onboard the cabin, bringing in a very small amount of new air. So you may well argue correctly that if the person in seat 2B has the flu, you’ll be breathing his air back in 35E. But to date, no definitive scientific studies have proven that allegation. Advice: hydrate yourself while on the plane, wash your hands often and turn off the air vent over your head.
7. X-ray machines at airport security checkpoints can erase your computer’s hard drive. This is a so-so myth. Basically X-rays are a form of electromagnetic energy, but they’re not magnetically charged, so there’s no real risk of sending out a strong enough magnetic pulse to cause your hard drive data to get erased. Unexplainable freak accidents involving laptop hard drives and X-rays have occurred in the post however. Advice: keep your laptops and mobile HDDs away from any kind of electromagnetic sources.
8. Your hotel card key can be used to steal your identity. It’s believed that some people can use your plastic hotel key card to use it to steal your identity and credit card account information. Completely false. In a nutshell, hotels do not put your personal information on the card. At the most, they will encode the room number and activation date.

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10. Khaju Bridge

9. Pont du Gard

8. Bridge of Sighs

7. Iron Bridge

6. Covered Bridges

5. Ponte Vecchio

4. The Wind and Rain Bridge

3. Brooklyn Bridge

2. Tower Bridge

1. Golden Gate Bridge

via: Neatorama

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In what’s a new and bizarre new technique of fighting, the new alarmant, New York bedbugs wide scale infestation, man’s best friend has been specially trained to sniff out the critters. Radar the beagle and Taz the Australian kelpie are just two of the ever expanding pack of highly trained canines. Chances are you’ve seen one of them in a flat building or hotel, but you’ve more then certain didn’t give too much thought to their unique talents.

“We are inundated with requests from hotels and apartment owners,” said Carl Massicott, the mastermind behind Advanced K9 Detectives, which has six dogs working steadily and two more in training.

“It’s difficult to keep up with the demand,”

The city’s Department of Housing, Preservation and Development says 6,889 infestation complaints were logged in the fiscal year ending last June, and 2,008 building owners were hit with summonses. In 2004, there were just 537 calls about bedbug infestations, and only 82 landlords were slapped with violations.

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Bellow you can see the first digitally created photo on how London’s most expensive property will look on the inside. The computer-generated picture visualizes the £100 million One Hyde Park penthouse, the most expensive flat in the world, upon completion in 2010. Other homes in One Hyde Park, Knightsbridge, have already sold at record prices of £6,000 per square foot.

The whole project is being managed by brothers Christian and Nick’s development company Candy & Candy, featuring 80 flats designed by architect Richard Rogers with communal spas, squash courts and a private wine-tasting facility. Among the buyers you can find some of the most famous and wealthy men, from oil moguls, to actors, to Russian oligarchs.

Knight Frank’s head of residential research, Liam Bailey, said sales at One Hyde Park proved the super-prime property market was still strong.

He said: “One Hyde Park is the most prominent example of activity at the top of the market, but its performance is not an anomaly. The pull effect of One Hyde Park has meant that whereas £2,500 per sq ft represented the peak of the market in Knightsbridge in 2006, 18 months later £4,000 per sq ft is not only achievable, it is now expected for refurbished and newly developed properties in the super-prime sector.”

The premium apartments will feature bullet proof windows, purified air systems and “panic rooms” and everyone on site will have access to an underground passage leading to the nearby Mandarin Oriental hotel. Although not yet even completed, half of the units have already been sold at an average of more than £20 million each with average per square-foot prices hitting £6,000 this year. Thus the previous record struck in last year’s June by, the then newly, converted flat stretching across the first and second stories of two Regency houses in the nearby Lowndes Square, Belgravia, sold for more than £4,250 per square foot, has been broken.

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Have you ever dreamed of sailing off into the sunset, on your very own boat which is also your hollyday (or even permanent, if you’re the adventurous type) residence? If you want something of striking simplicity or a luxurious environment, this collection has something for everybody. The Trilobis 65 is a masterpiece of engineering. Reaching 20 metres in length, the semi-submerget dwelling environment is nonpolluting (!), permiting living in harmony with the ocean surroundings. It’s just a fantastic sample of man’s ingeniosity, as it embraces technology that includes high-power composites and nonpolluting hydrogen fuels. Here are some images to help you picture it (the top picture too).

But having such a residence is not just relaxing and fascinating, it’s also very useful for some people. For example, 20% of Netherlands is underwater, so there is a need of some creative and innovative designs. Here are some examples:

At the other end of the line, if you have a very tight budget but you just won’t give up on your dream houseboat, all you need is a platform and a shelter; and what better way to combine these is there than to use a simple floating surface and a ready-made trailer or mobile home.

If you really want to relax in this way, but can’t afford a permanent residence, go on a cruise! Or if you want more, just try some amazing underwater and ocean-going hotels instead!

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The world of architecture and structure design has gone a long way in the past year. Technological breakthroughs have made it possible for us to construct buildings faster, bigger and taller then ever before, without any risk whatsoever. Bellow’s a list of nine of the most amazing structures, that are set tower the world in the future.

1. Aqua - USA

Set to be complete in late 2009 in the windy city of Chicago, the Aqua tower will dominate the city’s skyscrapers. While at a glimpse it may seem quite traditional, upon a closer inspection you’ll be able to appreciate the ripple/jelly effect created by variously sized balconies from top to bottom.

2. The Chicago Spire - USA

The Chicago spire will compete with the previous Aqua tower, for supremacy of the cities aerial supremacy. Sadly the Aqua tower may not have a chance, as the phenomenal Chicago spire, when completed in 2010, will be the world’s tallest residential building and the tallest building of any kind in the western world. Resembling a drill, the 609m structure will undoubtedly be a sight fore sore eyes.

4. Regatta Hotel - Jakarta

Built with a nautical theme in mind the Regatta Hotel will be one the most luxurious and eye pleasing resorts in the world. The resort will be consisted of 10 smaller towers, which are meant to represent sailing boats, with a tall, beautifully hollowed tower in their mist, representing a “lighthouse.”

5. Residence Antilia - India

As it can be seen in the photo, this building’s design is quite extravagant and well weird, to me it seems like a modern day Babylon gardens. The structure however has been met with severe criticism and protest from behalf of the native population, which live, in a proportion of 65%, in nearby slumps. Talk about hypocrisy, but alas the project has already been initialized.

6. Russia Tower - Russia

The soon to be completed Russia Tower, will be built in the heart of Moscow, where it’ll overlook the whole area, thanks to a observation station built on top of it. When completed, in the year 2012, the building will be the tallest in Europe, twice as tall as the Eiffel Tower.

7. Penang Global City Center, Malaysia

After months of rumors and speculations, this gigantic, typical Asian project, is in the final stages of approval and will undoubtedly soon start construction. The whole project will resemble a sci-fi like city, with two twin 200 m towers towering the whole complex and the whole island of Penang for that matter. Alas due to the project’s huge size, construction will last at least 15 years.

8. Gazprom Headquarters - Russia

This huge flame shaped building will house the Gazprom headquarters in St. Petersburg, and towering at a whooping 300m, it is certain to make any nearby building tiny in comparison. The building is also set to change color, so say officials, up to 10 times a day, depending on the sun’s position and atmospheric coloring. The building has already been nicknamed ‘corn on the cob’ by unhappy locals though.

9. Burj Dubai - Dubai

And here it is. La creme de la creme of modern architecture and skyscrapers. When completed next year it will be the tallest man-made structure in the world and the tallest building by a long shot with a predicted height of 818m. Currently the tallest building on earth, excluding an antenna, is Taipei 101 in Taiwan which stands at 509m.

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In what’s now become a sanctuary for Iranian propaganda, depicting anti American/Israeli murals, a Teheran gallery (the former US embassy) recently displayed a interesting artwork that undoubtedly stood out to many geeks. The mural in question is the one from the left, depicting a satanic like hand with split fingernails and two bracelets of the American, respectively the Israeli flag around it, crushing the globe. If we look at the second pic, the cover art for a 1990 classic video game Star Control, you can immediately notice the similarities. What do you think Iranian officials would think of the copycat artist?

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I know where I want to go! But how do I get there? Deciding the right means of transportation could make your vacation a whole lot better (or a whole lot worse), so you should take your time in picking it. Here you’ll find a quick guide with the major means of transportation and things that you should take into consideration when choosing.Airplane traveling is one of the most common forms to get to your destination, especially because it’s the fastest way. If your vacation days are not that many and your budget is not very limited, this is the right way. But traveling by plane is nowhere near perfect. The bad thing is that it’s quite expensive (except for the low budget flights) and you don’t get to see any sights. For that reason, it can be quite boring too.

Traveling by train is in that way the opposit of the airplane; you travel slow, but you have the opportunity to see wonderful sights, which could include lovely sunsets and vaste fields. You get to see cities, meet people, make friends, and your experience could be fantastic; it’s also very cheap! But when traveling long distances you would have to spend a night in the train, which some people have a problem against. If you don’t like to meet new people than this is probably not the best thing for you. But if you want to take some great pictures, go for it! Also keep in mind that some trains, such as the Trans-siberian are a real oasis of luxury.

If you want to travel by car, it’s probably best not to use your own car. That would just add to the stress and limit you in a way; you would not be able to drink, nor be very tired, you would always have to be fresh. How could you party all night when you have to be fresh ?! Also, the train is a better choice than the bus. But still, a car is also very cheap and some people just feel comfortable in the car. Traveling by boat is a totally unique experience; you can’t describe it in words, you can just feel it. Some people love it, some people hate it. There’s no middle way. Other more excentric things you can should do include flying with a baloon, paragliding, and canoeing. Of course these are not means of transportation themselves, but they should be mentioned as they are loads of fun, and can even be unique experiences. So think about the fact that getting there can be just as fun as what you do there. Don’t cut yourself out of what can be truly a fascinating trip!

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The common misconception is that China has is not very interesting, and that in fact it has very few attractions; few things could be further from the truth. Just take a look at Beijing, where you could stay for months and still see just half of it! This is not to mention the fact that with the summer Olympics, even more fantastic buildings are rising from the earth and there are even more things to do. I’m gonna name just a few, because if I were to talk about everything there it would take more than a day.Probably the first thing you want to do is check out the Great Wall of China; it stretches out for more than 5,000 kilometers and it’s the only building seen from outer space. It offers spectacular, breathtaking views and it’s definetly one of the greatest architectural achievements of mankind, and one of the greatest turistic attractions of the world. A walk on The Great Wall would definetly make your hollyday. The next thing you should do is go straight to Forbidden City. Splendid painted decoration on these royal architectural wonders, the grand and deluxe halls, with their surprisingly magnificent treasures will certainly satisfy ‘modern civilians’. Simply brilliant, not something you want to miss.

The Temple of Heaven is another worthwhile visiting place in Beijing. It is in fact a lot bigger than the Forbidden City with an area of about 2,700,000 square meters. Besides carefully designed buildings, there are also some other scenes that you can enjoy like Nine-Dragon Cypress. It’s said that the cypress was planted more than 500 years ago. This place truly deserves it’s name. Among the buildings created for the Olympics, probably the most notable is The Water Cube, a magnificent building, well worth checking out.

Hopefully by this time you’re already taking into consideration a trip there, and you have already left behind the totally untrue idea that China is dull or boring; it’s nothing near that! It just might be the hottest place on the planet this day, but there’s no better way of convincing yourself than going there. Also, stay tuned for part 2, where we’ll take a deeper dive into the beauties of Beijing!

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