Category Archives: Europe

Taking Liberties with Maps

Posted on April 20, 2011 by Brian D. Butler

Artist/designer Lena Corwin  began illustrating maps for Elle Decor magazine in 2004. Her new book, MAPS: Illustrating Cities (Other Books, April 2011), is a charming collection of forty of her favorite maps. Corwin’s whimsical maps are a clever mix of … Continue reading →

Posted in Books, Europe, Maps, Tourism, Travel Writing | 1 Comment

The English Obsession

Posted on April 14, 2011 by Brian D. Butler

Hat-tip to Simon Wallace for the post idea. If you’ve spent any time in England during the past decade, you will probably agree with London-based photographer Peter Dench that “the English have turned drinking into a national obsession, nearly an … Continue reading →

Posted in Europe, Photography | Tagged , | 3 Comments

Boutique Hotels at “good value”

Posted on April 6, 2011 by Brian D. Butler

The folks at Butikk hope to become the go-to site for qualitative information on “good value” design/boutique hotels around the world. Their proclaimed aim is “beauty, but not at any cost.” They currently list just a few dozen properties, but … Continue reading →

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Mapping London Underground

Posted on April 4, 2011 by Brian D. Butler

Hat tip to Evan Smythe for this post:

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GigaPanBot Does It Again

Posted on April 2, 2011 by Brian D. Butler

Photographer Jeffrey Martin of the website 360cities has created what maybe the world’s largest indoor photograph ever: a mindboggling 40 gigapixel, 360-degree image of the exquisite Philosophical Hall in the magnificent 12th century Strahov Monastery Library in Prague. Using the … Continue reading →

Posted in Europe, Libraries, Photography, Tourism | Tagged , | 1 Comment

Before Treasure Island

Posted on March 28, 2011 by Brian D. Butler

Nearly 135 years after it was begun, the abandoned first novel by Robert Louis Stevenson has been discovered. The incomplete book, titled The Hair Trunk or The Ideal Commonwealth, was discovered by literary sleuth and Stevenson scholar Michel Le Bris. … Continue reading →

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Sunday, Why So Random (again)

Posted on March 27, 2011 by Brian D. Butler

 

Posted in Art, Asia, Europe, Libraries, Maps, Photography, Uncategorized | Tagged , , | 1 Comment

Where’s the Next Pop-up Restaurant ?

Posted on March 26, 2011 by Brian D. Butler

Beginning this April 1st, a clever pair of pop-up restaurants  commissioned by Electrolux, the Swedish appliance company, will appear around Europe briefly perching on iconic monuments, buildings and mountains. The restaurant “Cubes”, designed by Italian architects Park Associati, feature laser-cut … Continue reading →

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Barcelona’s Inventive Museum

Posted on March 22, 2011 by Brian D. Butler

The Museu d’Idees i Invents de Barcelona (Museum of Ideas and Invention), or miBa to its close friends, opens its doors to the general public tomorrow, March 23rd. Brainchild of Catalan inventor, entrepreneur and motivational speaker Pepe Torres, the miBa … Continue reading →

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Anne Frank and Dutch Book Week

Posted on March 20, 2011 by Brian D. Butler

thanks to Marthe Dijkstra for this suggestion: Each year the CPNB, or Collectieve Propaganda van het Nederlandse Boek, organizes the Dutch Book Week (Boekenweek ) to promote Dutch literature and reading. And every year a specific genre is profiled. This … Continue reading →

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