Month: April 2020

The sad story of the half-constructed abandoned resort at Cala d’en Serra – Ibiza

Ivan

We are in Spain. In the far north of the island near Portinax is a beautiful little horseshoe shaped beach called Cala d’en Serra, surrounded by high pine covered cliffs with crystal clear waters. This beach was also named one of Europe’s top beaches, according one of lot reports onlline. Despite it is much like many of the smaller beaches across Ibiza, what makes this truly special is the abandoned resort situated just meters above the beach. In 1969, a luxury hotel resort was planned for construction on one of…

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#TodayInHistory – April 30

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April 30 – Some important events on this day 311 👉🏼 Roman Emperor Galerius issues Edict of Toleration, ending persercution of Christians in the Roman Empire 711 👉🏼 Islamic conquest of Iberia: Moorish troops led by Tariq ibn-Ziyad land at Gibraltar to begin their invasion of the Iberian Peninsula (Al-Andalus) 1349 👉🏼 Jewish community of Radolfzell, Germany, exterminated 1492 👉🏼 Christopher Columbus is given royal commission by Spanish monarchs Isabella I and Ferdinand II to equip his fleet to the New World 1562 👉🏼 1st French colonists in North America:…

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Burke & Hare Murder Dolls: the mystery of the dolls in miniature coffins

Pavel

William Burke and William Hare were two serial killers who lived and operated in Edinburgh, Scotland, from November 1827 to October 1828. The duo, with the complicity of their companions, lured in and murdered their lodgers in a scheme to provide fresh bodies to the local anatomy school. Here Dr. Robert Knox, a brilliant and well-known local anatomy teacher, purchased the human remains and most likely knew that something was a bit suspicious about his “supply chain”. They killed 17 people and the crimes were exposed when another lodger discovered…

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William Randolph Hearst: the “father” of fake news!

Robin

“Fake news”, very popular and read also on current days, expecially on social networkd and in a large number in this period of pandemic, has its roots, many people believe, in a man named William Randolph Hearst, born on this day, April 29, 1863. He was given the San Francisco Examiner by his father, George, a miner who had become a multi-millionaire and US Senator. Thus, relishing his role as an influential editor, the young Hearst later moved to New York City where acquired the New York Journal. As he…

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#TodayInHistory – April 29

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April 29 – Some important events on this day 1429 👉🏼 Joan of Arc arrives at the siege of Orleans 1522 👉🏼 Emperor Charles V names Frans van Holly inquisitor-general of Netherlands. 1623 👉🏼 11 Dutch ships depart for the conquest of Peru 🇵🇪 1701 👉🏼 Drenthe, Netherlands, adopts Gregorian calendar 📆 1769 👉🏼 Scottish engineer James Watt’s patent for a steam engine with a separate condenser enrolled (Patent 913). 1834 👉🏼 Charles Darwin’s expedition sees the top of the Andes Mountains from Patagonia 1852 👉🏼 1st edition of Peter…

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Captain William Robinson: the keeper who won’t leave his lighthouse in Whitehall – Michigan

Anya016

White River is nearly twenty-four miles (about 38 km) in length and passes through White Lake before emptying into Lake Michigan. When in 1675, Father Pere Marquette stopped in the area, he learned that the Native Americans called the stream “Wabish-Sippe,” meaning the river with white clay in the water, which probably originated the names of White River and White Lake. The cities of Whitehall and Montague are located on opposite sides of the river at the head of White Lake and were first settled by Europeans just before the…

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#TodayInHistory – April 28

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April 28 – Some important events on this day 1253 👉🏼 Nichiren, a Japanese Buddhist monk, propounds Nam Myoho Renge Kyo for the first time and declares it to be the essence of Buddhism, in effect founding Nichiren Buddhism. 1550 👉🏼 Powers of Dutch inquisition extends 🇳🇱 1611 👉🏼 Establishment of the Pontifical and Royal University of Santo Tomas, The Catholic University of the Philippines, oldest existing university in Asia and largest Catholic university in the world. 1639 👉🏼 After the Great Plague of London broke out in 1665, 100,000…

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The strange stories of Mouth Cemetery – Michigan

Leo S

Mouth Cemetery in White River Township, Michigan was established in 1851, even though it is believed that an unknown number of men and women were buried in unmarked graves throughout the area beginning in 1830. History apart, the cemetery and surrounding area are known for having a history of strange occurrences. Not far from the shores of Lake Michigan, popular for its countless shipwrecks and clear waters in spring, the cemetery is surrounded by dense trees in a somewhat remote area. At a little over 165 years old, however, it…

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Lapu-Lapu: the Philippine hero who killed Ferdinand Magellan

Adam

Someone has compared the first circumnavigation of the globe to the first adventures in space. The reason? Magellan and his companions faced the unknown, and seas never crossed by other Europeans before, in territories where unknown and perhaps hostile citizens lived. Although the history of space exploration has had its victims (18 astronauts in all, both men and women women, among the Soviets and the United States), the Magellan expedition ended much more disastrously, at least for the cost in terms of human lives. Ferdinand Magellan (1480-1521) was not very…

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#TodayInHistory – April 27

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April 27 – Some important events on this day 4977 B.C. 👉🏼 Universe is created, according to German mathematician and astronomer Johannes Kepler. In any case, as for his calculation about the universe’s birthday, scientists in the 20th century developed the Big Bang theory, which showed that his calculations were off by about 13.7 billion years. 🌎 1509 👉🏼 Pope Julius II excommunicates Italian state of Venice 1521 👉🏼 Navigator Ferdinand Magellan killed in the Philippines. After traveling three-quarters of the way around the globe, Portuguese navigator is killed during…

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The images of a Venice free of tourists transformed by COVID-19

Anya016

In addition to being one of the most beautiful cities in the world, either with the snow, or with the high water, or during its magnificent carnival (and did you know that seen from above, its shape resembles that of a swan?), Venice is one of the full-of-tourist places in the Italy, maybe in Europe. Thousands of people flock to its narrow streets every day, up to the splendid Piazza San Marco, strictly passing through the Rialto Bridge, as the piercing chatter of tourists, in all the languages of the…

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#TodayInHistory – April 26

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April 26 – Some important events on this day 1467 👉🏼 The miraculous image in Our Lady of Good Counsel appear in Genazzano, Italy 🇮🇹 1478 👉🏼 Pazzi conspirators attack Lorenzo de’Medici and kill Giuliano de’Medici in Florence 1514 👉🏼 Nicolaus Copernicus makes his 1st observations of Saturn 🪐 1564 👉🏼 William Shakespeare is baptized in Stratford-upon-Avon, Warwickshire, England 1654 👉🏼 Jews are expelled from Brazil 🇧🇷 1677 👉🏼 Emperor Leopold I forms University of Innsbruck 🇦🇹 1755 👉🏼 1st Russian university opens in Moscow 1803 👉🏼 Meteorites fall in…

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The beautiful old shipwrecks visible from sky above to crystal clear water of Lake Michigan

Pavel

In these days of quarantine, in which nature seems to be reborn thanks to the forced interruption of human activities, many photographs circulating on the web of clear waters, or animals that reclaim spaces previously occupied by man. The images of wrecks that stand out distinctly on the bottom of Lake Michigan, in the United States, could seem to be taken these days, due to the extraordinary transparency of the water. Instead, each spring on this lake, if you’re lucky, you’ll be able to see shipwrecks due to the incredibly…

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#April 25, 1983: Konrad Kujau and his faked Hitler diaries

Robin

“Hitler’s Diaries Discovered!” screamed enthusiast the front page of the German magazine Stern on this day while, more conservatively, the Sunday Times in London, which had agreed to pay paid Stern £600,000 to share in the glory of this stunning story, offered its readers a “world exclusive” on “The Secrets of Hitler’s War.” But, in order: German journalist Gerd Heinemann had told Stern that 62 volumes of diaries written by the Führer between 1932 and 1945 had been recovered from a plane crash in East Germany at the end of…

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#TodayInHistory – April 25

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April 25 – Some important events on this day 1507 👉🏼 German cartographer Martin Waldseemüller first to use the name America on his world map “Universalis Cosmographia” 🗺 1644 👉🏼 Last Ming Emperor Chongzhen hangs himself from a tree on Jing Mountain, Beijing, rather than be captured by forces of Li Zicheng. Chongzhen was the 16th and last emperor of the Ming Dynasty in China, reigning from 1627-44. He inherited a failing empire and though he tried to stem corruption and rebellions throughout his reign, he was ultimately unable to…

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Pie Barm: an unconventional traditional sandwich from Wigan – England

Leo S

Wigan, is an English town west of Manchester, well known for its enthusiastic pie-eating. Whether it is covered in pea-wet or served up with chips, Wiganers are renowned for their love of all things pastry-wrapped, and the city also hosting the annual World Pie Eating Championship. But why has Wigan become so synonymous with pie, and Wigan folk have been called pie-eaters for almost a century? You’d be forgiven for thinking that it’s because of the sheer volume of pies that are consumed by locals every year. However, they don’t…

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#TodayInHistory – April 24

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April 24 – Some important events on this day 1479 BC 👉🏼 Thutmose III ascends to the throne of Egypt, although power effectively shifts to Hatshepsut (according to the Low Chronology of the 18th Dynasty) 1184 BC 👉🏼 The Greeks enter Troy using the Trojan Horse (traditional date) 1066 👉🏼 Halley’s Comet sparks English monk to predict country will be destroyed 1704 👉🏼 “Boston News-Letter” 1st successful newspaper in US, forms 1800 👉🏼 Library of Congress established. President John Adams approves legislation to appropriate $5,000 to purchase “such books as…

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Quarantine in Milan: here’s what it’s like in a coronavirus red zone.

Anya016

First Easter and Easter Monday. Then, Italy’s Liberation Day on April 25, a national Italian holiday commemorating the end of Nazi occupation during World War II and the victory of the Resistance in Italy, and May 1, international workers’ day. In any case, the “quarantine” in Milan and not only, facing the Coronavirus emergency, continues. The emergency has imposed restrictions all over Italy and, as a result, the cities have completely emptied. These are the squares and streets of Milan on a day in the midst of Covid-19 pandemic. Deserted…

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#TodayInHistory – April 23

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April 23 – Some important events on this day 215 BC 👉🏼 A temple, built on the Capitoline Hill, is dedicated to Venus Erycina to commemorate the Roman defeat at Lake Trasimene 1014 👉🏼 King Brian Boru of Ireland defeats Viking forces at Battle of Clontarf, freeing Ireland from foreign control 1516 👉🏼 Duke Wilhelm IV of Bavaria endorses “The German Beer Purity Law” (Reinheitsgebot) and adds to it standards for the sale of beer. Translation of Reinheitsgebot from the “History of German Brewing” by Karl J. Eden: “We hereby…

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The Last Resort Bar: here serial killer Aileen Wuornos drank her last beer~

Leo S

On January 9, 1991, police arrested Aileen Wuornos while she was drinking a beer at The Last Resort biker bar in Port Orange, Florida. Even though she was arrested for an outstanding warrant, a decade later she would be put to death for the murder of six men, and executed by lethal injection on October 9, 2002. In any case, she murdered seven men within a period of 12 months. Her first victim was Richard Charles Mallory (51) on November 30, 1989, an electronics store owner. He was a convicted…

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#TodayInHistory – April 22

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April 22 – Some important events on this day 1500 👉🏼 Pedro Álvares Cabral is the first european to discover Brazil, landing near Monte Pascoal, claims it for Portugal. Pedro Álvares Cabral was chosen by the Portuguese crown to lead a major expedition to India in 1500. A fleet of 13 ships and an estimated 1500 men left Portugal to follow in the footsteps of Vasco da Gama’s earlier expedition in search of new trade routes. It is still unclear today whether Cabral’s journey into the west Atlantic was deliberate…

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St.Agustine Lighthouse – Florida

Anya016

The St. Augustine Light Station is a private-aid to navigation and an active, working lighthouse in St. Augustine, Florida. It was the first lighthouse established in Florida by the new, territorial, American Government in 1824. According to some archival records and maps, it was placed on the site of an earlier watchtower, described as a beacon, built by the Spanish as early as the late 16th century. And it seems plausible, given the levels of maritime trade by that time. By 1870, beach erosion was threatening the first lighthouse, and…

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#April 21, 753 BC: according to tradition, Romulus and Remus found Rome

Robin

According to tradition, on April 21, 753 B.C., Romulus and his twin brother, Remus, found Rome on the site where they were suckled by a she-wolf as orphaned infants. Actually, this myth originated sometime in the fourth century B.C., and the exact date of Rome’s founding was symbolically set by the Roman scholar Marcus Terentius Varro in the first century B.C. , but the legendary story of the ancient city is know still today all over the world. According to the legend, Romulus and Remus were the sons of Rhea…

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#TodayInHistory – April 21

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April 21 – Some important events on this day 753 BC 👉🏼 Romulus and Remus found Rome (traditional date) ✔️ READ THE ARTICLE! 1526 👉🏼 First Battle of Panipat: Central Asian conqueror Babur defeats Sultan Ibrahim Lodi, establishing the Mughal Empire in India. The Mughal forces led by their commander Babur defeated the forces of the Delhi sultanate, destroying its influence in northern India and marking the beginnings of the Mughal Empire. Babur’s army was vastly outnumbered, an estimated 10,000 of his men faced off against 100,000 of Lodi’s and…

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Milltown Cemetery – Belfast, Northern Ireland

Ivan

We are in the Ballymurphy area of Belfast, Ireland. Milltown cemetery is a sprawling graveyard full of history, conflict and tragedy. It has seen some of the largest funeral processions in all of Ireland and is the final resting place of more than 200,000 souls. It was opened in 1869 as part of the broader provision of services for the city of Belfast’s expanding Catholic population, when the historic Friar’s Bush Cemetery was becoming overcrowded, and only families with burial rights were allowed to be interred there. Although the Milltown…

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#April 20, 1887: in Paris, world’s first motor race!

Robin

Historic records show that on this day, April 29, 1887, Georges Bouton “won the world’s first motor race”. But it was a hollow victory and there was no champagne celebration. The reason? Bouton and his co-driver were the only ones taking part. And, to be exact, it wasn’t even a car, but a steam-powered quadricycle. The curious event was a test organised by the newspaper “Le Velocipede” to see if Bouton’s machine, which had boasted speeds of 60kmph, could make the 29-kilometre distance between Neuilly Bridge in Paris and the…

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#TodayInHistory – April 20

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April 20 – Some important events on this day 1611 👉🏼 First known performance of Shakespeare’s tragedy Macbeth at the Globe Theatre, London, recorded by Simon Forman 1736 👉🏼 French mathematician Pierre Louis Maupertuis begins Lapland expedition to measure latitude and shape of the earth, joined by fellow scientists Anders Celsius, Charles Etienne Louis Camus, Alexis Clairaut, and Pierre-Charles Le Monnier. 1759 👉🏼 George Frideric Handel is buried in Westminster Abbey, London. As a young man the German born Handel travelled and lived in Italy, its operatic tradition becoming very…

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9 wondrous breads to make in Quarantine if you’ve not enough yeast!

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Baking has become a staple for many during the coronavirus pandemic, keeping people entertained at home. With yeast that is plundered in the supermarkets, many “home-bakers” who are sheltering at home are desperate, but probably don’t know that people have produced bread without yeast across history, cultures, and climes, leaving an incredible heritage to choose from when the much coveted yeast is limited. From the sticky-sweet steamed bread of Colonial New England to the Icelandic rye that rises in a hot spring, or a Canadian peanut butter bread of the…

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#TodayInHistory – April 19

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April 19 – Some important events on this day 607 👉🏼 Comet 1P/607 H1 (Halley) approaches within 0.0898 AUs of Earth ☄️ 1770 👉🏼 British explorer Captain James Cook first sights Australia 🇦🇺 1775 👉🏼 American Revolution begins in Lexington, Massachusetts. The “Shot Heard Round the World” took place in Concord later that day. The American Revolutionary War began on this day with a battle between British soldiers and American revolutionaries at Concord and Lexington in Massachusetts. The first shot of the war – the so-called “shot heard ’round the…

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Wandering through Wallenstein Palace Garden in Prague: the Dripstone Wall

Ivan

We are in Prague, a magnificient city full of hidden alleys and charming walkways. Hidden behind the high walls, at the heart of baroque palace grounds, among a variety of buildings, is a palace lush garden with fountains, statues and other unique features. Constructed at the behest of Bohemian military leader who fought on the Catholic side during the Thirty Years’ War Albrecht Vaclav Eusebius of Wallenstein, between 1623 and 1630, the Wallenstein Palace (Valdštejnský palác) enjoyed a centuries-long first life as a magnificent private residence for various generations of…

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