I recently ran across a blog that was “offering’ a download of this painting (see above) to be used as a screen saver. It looked very familiar and after a little research I realized that it was by the 19th century Irish-American artist William M. Harnett. Many of his intensely detailed still life paintings incorporated books or other printed materials. The more I looked, the more I found.
Yesterday the German rail company Deutsche Bahn ended sleeper train service between Berlin and Paris. Once a mainstay of continental travel, the overnight route ran for nearly eighty years. Demand for the night train, which took 12 hours on the Paris-Berlin route, has dropped dramatically due to competition from budget airlines. The flight from berlin to Paris is only two hours and typically costs about €15 less than the night train’s least expensive couchette ticket.
I, for one, am sad to see the service end. And plans are for most rail companies to end many of the intercity sleepers within the next few years. Truly, the end of an era in civilized travel. Although, truth be told, I usually don’t spring for a sleeper car, and just make do with a regular seat.
Last month we shared a story on designer Daan Roosegaarde’s wonderful solar powered bike path in the Netherlands. Now he has worked his magic with a stunning installation at Amsterdam’s historic Central Station. Developed in collaboration with scientists from the University of Leiden, the beautiful light display uses liquid crystal technology to project a vibrant, multicolored visualization across the station’s east façade windows.
The installation marks the 125th anniversary the Central Station and UESCO’s International Year of Light 2015. The light show will be visible for the entire year, but only for a moment an hour after sunset each evening.
images © Studio Roosegaarde
In support of a fundraising campaign for the international charity group Worldbuilders , the ever popular author Neil Gaiman agreed to perform an iconic piece of children’s literature. The overwhelming choice was Lewis Carroll’s whimsical, wacky nonsense poem “Jabberwocky”.
Most visitors to London are interested in historic pubs, trendy bars or hipster coffeehouses, but for those seeking a sugar high head over to the new Cereal Killer Café. Located on brick lane in uber hip Shoreditch, the brand new enterprise offers 120 cereals from around the world, with 20 topping choices and 30 kinds of milk.
Launched by twin brothers Alan and Gary Keery, Irish-born cereologists, the café also has cereal inspired pastries and coffee, and of course the décor is 20th century retro pop culture memorabilia.
We had a similar Seinfeld-inspired café in Philadelphia called Cereology a while back, but it seems that around here most folks want to do their cereal eating at home.
Spanish artist Pablo Valbuena took advantage of the ongoing renovations at Paris’ historic Gare d”Austerlitz train station to create this very impressive sound and light installation. The “Kinematope” covers more than half a kilometer of the underground construction site with a constantly shifting cascade of light for an eerie sci-fi effect.
Bloomsbury Publishing—whose authors include Neil Gaiman, J.K. Rowling and Khaled Hosseini—produced this little video to remind folks of the power of reading and the importance of great writing in our lives.
In September, I spent two weeks in Alaska hoping for a peek at the aurora borealis. After staying up late (I mean really late) every night, not a glimmer. So, I guess I’ll have to settle for fantastic videos like “Two Lands—Greenland/Iceland”. Photographer Joe Capra spent 4 days shooting in Iceland and 6 days in the bitter cold of Greenland to get the astonishing footage for this spectacular time-lapse video.
Travel Between The Pages 