Leeds is ready to welcome the world this week with a series of events and activities as the host city builds up to the Grand Départ of the Tour de France on Saturday. Events will be happening across the city every day to celebrate the final countdown to the start of the world’s largest annual sporting event from The Headrow on Saturday morning.Music and dance performances, theatre and cinema productions, art and museum exhibitions, food and drink festivals, bike races and shows, a pre-race parade featuring the Tour riders themselves, the Opening Ceremony Team Presentation and even a carnival will all be taking place in Leeds this week in honour of the legendary cycle race.Details of 48 of the leading Tour activities can be seen at www.granddepartleeds.co.uk/events, including free lunchtime concerts taking place next to the startline on Victoria Gardens every day from noon-2pm.Other events include the Bicyclism exhibition showcasing cycling in Leeds at the Leeds City Museum, … [Read more...] about Leeds ready to welcome the world for historic Grand Départ
World famous historical places
Climate change risk to Scotland’s world-famous historic sites
DOZENS of Scotland’s world-famous historical sites are at risk from climate change, experts have warned. Historic Environment Scotland (HES) said more than half of the 352 sites it administers are now in danger from the effects of extreme weather, with 28 listed as ‘high risk’. These include the vast Fort George fortress near Inverness, the 800-year-old Inchcolm abbey and Inchcolm island on the Firth of Forth, and the Brough of Birsay, a Pictish and Viking-settled island in Orkney’s world heritage site. Loading article content READ MORE: Built to hold off an army, but weather is a bigger threat But even popular sites such as Edinburgh Castle and the neolithic village of Skara Brae on Orkney will have to be protected from increasingly unpredictable weather. Problems identified in the HES Climate Change Risk Assessment include flooding, coastal erosion, landslides and increased rainfall causing accelerated decay. The risk assessment is the first … [Read more...] about Climate change risk to Scotland’s world-famous historic sites
Fury in Shakespeare’s hometown over plans to build a giant Ferris wheel opposite world famous RSC Theatre turning it into ‘another tacky Blackpool’
A TEMPEST is brewing in Shakespeare's hometown after developers got the green light to erect a giant Ferris wheel opposite the world famous RSC Theatre.Protesters had attacked plans to build the 115ft-tall wheel, saying it will turn the town into "another tacky Blackpool".Residents also set up an action group called "Stop the Wheel" in a desperate bid to block it.But Stratford-upon-Avon District Council this week approved planning permission for the wheel to be built in time for next Easter.De Koning Leisure Group will erect the wheel across the river from the Royal Shakespeare Theatre and will remain on site for six months.The decision was made despite a survey by the local newspaper showing 69 per cent of people were opposed to the project.Objections included people who lived nearby who were concerned tourists would be able to peek into their back gardens.Other concerns included traffic congestion, lighting pollution when the wheel operates at night, and animal welfare.The wheel will … [Read more...] about Fury in Shakespeare’s hometown over plans to build a giant Ferris wheel opposite world famous RSC Theatre turning it into ‘another tacky Blackpool’
Racing against time: Brazil one year ahead of the World Cup 2014
Construction problems have been plaguing Brazil's World Cup organizers: six stadiums have been completed just in time for the dress rehearsal, the Confederations Cup that kicks off on June 15 in the national stadium in the capital Brasilia. There have been delays everywhere and, even now, construction work continues at the many of the scheduled locations. Mountains of sand are still blocking some of the entrances to the stadium in Rio; in Recife, the access to the subway system is still under construction; the roads leading up to the stadium in Fortalezza are incomplete; and in Belo Horizonte the entrance areas haven't been cleared for wheelchair drivers. Construction of the Arena de Sao Paolo, meanwhile, where the FIFA World Cup is to kick off on June 12 2014, was suspended due to a legal battle. Only after the intervention of FIFA General Secretary Jerome Valcke - who had threatened to withdraw Sao Paolo from the list of locations - were differences put aside and the adversaries … [Read more...] about Racing against time: Brazil one year ahead of the World Cup 2014
Tourists Flock to Berlin’s Historical Cemeteries
Some 260 cemeteries of varying size are to be found in the German capital, of which 190 are still in use today. Extraordinary in their size and character, they sprawl across more than 1,200 hectares (3,707 acres) of land in and around Berlin. "The prolific number of cemeteries is due to the city's more recent history," said Hellmuth Pohren-Hartmann, the German author of a recent book on Berlin's Friedenau cemetery, where Hollywood legend Marlene Dietrich and famous Berlin-born photographer Helmut Newton are buried. "When Berlin was made the capital of the newly-founded German Empire in 1871, it was a pleasant though somewhat provincial city," he said. Pohren-Hartmann said that only later did it become a world-class metropolis, expanding in size via the incorporation of numerous surrounding towns, villages and communities in 1920. "These towns and villages all had their own cemeteries," points out Pohren-Hartmann. "Hence, the city's wealth of burial places." The city owns … [Read more...] about Tourists Flock to Berlin’s Historical Cemeteries