Europe
Casa Milà, Park Güell & Sagrada Família, Barcelona, Spain
The vivid buildings designed by Catalonian architect Antoni Gaudi defy the concepts of modern, sleek glass architecture found in every business hot spot. The organic forms create an atmosphere of being on some other planet.
Gaudi designed several buildings to his hometown Barcelona. Casa Milà (1906-1910), also known as La Pedrera, is open to visitors. It was originally designed and still used as a rental flat building. Park Güell (1900-1914) is maybe the most unique work of the architect; it is a large outdoor park that contains several distinguished buildings and other items, all designed by Gaudí. Sagrada Familia is a cathedral that has been constructed since 1882, and for example the dome is still missing. Nevertheless, even in unfinished state the cathedral is an architectural experience not to be missed.
Stari Most, Mostar, Bosnia-Hercegovina
The Mostar old bridge was part of Unesco world heritage until it was blown away during the recent Yugoslavian war. Currently it is being built again with the help of the European Union, but it will take another four hundred years until the bridge is in the same shape as it was before the war.
Mostar has several other ruins that also show the endless stupidity of mankind. Otherwise the city is quite picturesque and people are working to gradually hide the scars of war under new plaster and buildings.
Fashion district, Milan, Italy
There are a couple of dozen blocks filled with haute couture fashion boutiques in the centre of Milan, near the cathedral Duomo. All major brands, including (but not limited to) Prada, Gucci, Armani and Versace, have large shops there. Prada has at least four or five. So don you most fashionable attire on with proper shoes or boots, and start shopping. Remember to have a thick wallet or credit card with a high limit to enjoy the experience.
Ny Carlsberg Glyptotek, Copenhagen, Denmark
The Ny Carlsberg Glyptotek is a large collection of classical and modern sculptures (glyptotek means ‘collection of sculptures’) located in Copenhagen. The museum was established by Carl Jacobsen, who also founded Carlsberg breweries, and donated to the city of Copenhagen and the state of Denmark.
The collection includes also other works of art, for example, the series of Paul Gauguin paintings, and a large number of French paintings originally shown in the Danish national gallery.
Hermitage, St. Petersburg, Russia
The old winter residence for Russian czars is now a museum, showing the luxurious lifestyle of the former Russian emperors. The rooms themselves are quite a sight, not to mention the items on display. The amount of precious metals and stones in stunning, and here everything that glitters is gold.
The two lower floors contain also a load of classical paintings, with weight of course on Russian masters. The third floor is devoted to early modern art, collected by Russian high society before the revolution. One of the masterpieces on display is Matisse’s The Dance. To see the counterpart, The Play, you have to visit Museum of Modern Art is New York.
Vigeland Park, Oslo, Norway
Vigeland Park is an 80 acre oasis in middle of Norwegian capital, filled with sculptures of Gustav Vigeland. The city of Oslo gave the parkland to the artist and in exchange the city got ownership of all his sculptures, including future work.
The park has 212 sculptures made in granite and bronze, all designed by Mr. Vigeland. In the middle of the park, there is an over 13 meters tall monolith that is carved from a single block of stone and contains 121 figures. The monolith was designed in ten months, but three stone carvers worked on the monolith from 1929 to 1943.
Kunsthaus, Zürich, Switzerland
Kunsthaus is a vast museum focusing on everything. Or at least it seems so when you have walked third hour in a row in the place and discover yet another floor — packed full with Picasso, Magrite et al. One can really see that Zürich is an affluent place…
Hundertwasser Haus, Vienna, Austria
Friedensreich Hundertwasser was an architect and artist withclear, albeit unconventional, visions. His houses and works of art are easily recognisable from wild and vivid colours, organic shapes and warmth.
The Hundertwasser Haus is both a museum and a home for several tenants that have known Mr. Hundertwasser personally. The museum building itself is worth a visit, and the collection is the icing of the cake.