Eight Paintings Every Traveler Should See (And Where to See Them)
Posted October 17, 2009 , comments closedEight Paintings Every Traveler Should See (And Where to See Them)
Many travelers have a bucket list of places they want to go before they, well, kick the bucket. They want to see new sights, scale soaring mountains and tap their toes in exotic seas … and slowing down for a museum tour isn’t always high on that list. But sometimes it should be.
Here are eight classic paintings every traveler needs to add to their list before it is too late.
The Mona Lisa in the Musée du Louvre – Paris, France
Some experts speculate that the Mona Lisa is a self-portrait of Leonardo da Vinci
So maybe you’ve heard Leonardo’s leading lady is a disappointment. The painting is small, it is hard to see and the crowds are overwhelming. Well, it is all true. The painting is small and the crowds are big, but few paintings in the world have stirred as much mystery as this 16th century portrait. And even if she is a tad tiny, the Louvre is the largest national museum in France, the most visited museum in the world and is a 12th century landmark in the City of Lights … it can’t all be disappointing, right?
Starry Night in the Museum of Modern Art – New York City, New York, USA
Don McLean’s song “Starry, Starry Night” is based on this painting
Although he only sold one painting in his lifetime, Vincent van Gogh is a big star in the artistic world. Arguably his most famous painting, Starry Night is one of the most replicated prints in the world and is a must-see masterpiece for vacationers heading to the Big Apple. Located in Midtown Manhattan, The Museum of Modern Art has been called the most influential museum of modern art in the world.
Guernica in the Museo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina Sofía – Madrid, Spain
The painting revealed Picasso’s horror at Nazi soldiers in Spain
Pablo Picasso’s Guernica painting depicts the bombing of Guernica, Spain by German and Italian planes during the Spanish Civil War in 1937. The mural was commissioned by the Spanish Republican government to adorn the Spanish Pavilion during the 1937 World’s Fair in Paris. It is currently on display at the Museo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina Sofia in Madrid where it serves as global reminder of the sobering catastrophes of war.
The Birth of Venus in the Uffizi Gallery – Florence, Italy
Botticelli’s political connections saved his painting from fires that destroyed other “pagan” art
The Italian Renaissance was born in Florence and thus, it is only fitting one of the most famous Italian paintings, the Birth of Venus, is housed in Florence’s oldest, and most famous, museum-The Uffizi Gallery. There is much speculation in the art world as to when and why Sandro Botticelli created his masterpiece-which depicts Venus, the goddess of love and beauty, emerging from a seashell and being handed a flowered cloak by the Horae, the goddesses of the seasons. However, there is no denying The Birth of Venus should be added to every art-loving traveler’s list of must-see paintings.
The Kiss in the Österreichische Galerie Belvedere – Vienna, Austria
Klimt liked closeness-similarly nestled couples appear in two of his other paintings
Gustav Klimt’s Der Kuss, or The Kiss, shows a couple in varying hues of gold mosaic-like colors sharing … that’s right, a kiss. Painted during Klimt’s golden period, The Kiss is considered his most famous painting and it is believed that Klimt himself, along with his longtime partner, Emilie Flöge, modeled for the painting. In 2003, a €100 Painting Coin, was issued with The Kiss on one side and a studio-bound Klimt on the reverse. The painting is currently housed in the Österreichische Galerie Belvedere in Vienna.
The Scream in The Munch Museum – Oslo, Norway
This painting has also been referred to as “The Cry”
If one is good, then four is better … or at least Norway-native Edvard Munch thought so. He created not one, but four versions of his most-famous painting, The Scream, which portrays a tormented sexless figure against a blood-red landscape of Oslofjord. One version of the painting is housed in the National Gallery in Oslo, another is owned by Norwegian billionaire, Petter Olsen and the remaining two paintings are property of the Munch Museum. However, one of the most famous versions, a 32 inch X 30 inch tempera on cardboard, was stolen from the museum in 2004 and has yet to be returned. Now that is something to scream about.
American Gothic in the Art Institute of Chicago – Chicago, Illinois, USA
Notice how the pitchfork is echoed in the farmer’s overalls
Every traveler has seen a parody of this painting in some form or another, whether it was Kermit and Piggy, Mickey and Minnie or Homer and Marge. But Grant Wood’s original American Gothic masterpiece-who was modeled by his spinster sister and his dentist is proudly displayed at the Art Institute of Chicago. Interestingly enough, this famous Iowan couple never modeled together for the painting and neither of them ever stood in front of the Carpenter Gothic house that sits in the background.
Water Lilies in the Musée Marmottan – Paris France
Monet suffered from cataracts when he completed many of the Water Lilies paintings
Claude Monet’s Water Lilies series is a compilation of 250 oil paintings from the flower gardens at his home in Giverny, in northern France. The paintings are dispersed throughout the world in major museums in France, the United States and Japan. The largest collection of Monet’s work is housed in a 19th Century mansion, the Museè Marmottan, that was the beneficiary of more than 130 paintings, watercolors, pastels and drawings when Monet’s son left them to the museum in his will.
Read about author Cherrye Moore and check out her other BootsnAll articles
Additional photo credits:
Picasso by Mark Berry on Flickr, Botticelli by MrOmega on Flickr, American Gothic by Opacity on Flickr
The Great Lakes Region
Posted September 24, 2009 , comments closed
The Great Lakes region is composed of some cities from US and Canada. It is surrounded by a wide shoreline and contributes greatly in technology and agriculture. The region of Great Lakes includes a large portion of a province in Ontario, Canada. It also includes eight states in the USA. These US states border Great Lakes and they are New York, Ohio, Indiana, Pennsylvania, Illinois, Wisconsin, Minnesota, and Michigan. The whole Great Lake portion of the Canadian shoreline is found in Ontario. The consequent geographical definition of the Great Lakes region is the terrain area that consumes into the said region. Great Lakes are distinguished for its significant contributions in the field of political economy, culture, technology, and natural resources. Among the prominent contributions are the democratic economy and government. In addition, industrial production and inventions for automobile manufacturing, agricultural machinery, transportation, as well as commercial architecture are considered its most prominent contributions. Lakes hold over a fifth portion of the surface freshwater in the world. This region has a huge number of mineral deposits like iron ore especially in the Mesabi Range of Minnesota as well as in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula. Moreover, southern Illinois and western Pennsylvania is rich in anthracite coal, also a valuable mineral deposit. The significant abundance of coal and iron provided the most basic materials for the largest steel production in the world during the late 19th century to early 20th century. The soil here is very rich and produces large quantities of corn and cereals. The first major “oil boom” in the world was hosted by Pennsylvania. The wild rice of Minnesota and the cranberry bogs of Wisconsin continue to yield natural rations, which were introduced by the Indians to some Europeans during the 17th century. In terms of technology, the region of Great Lakes is home to various globally prominent breakthroughs in the field of agriculture. Some of the most memorable contributions on technology include Cyrus McCormick’s mechanical reaper, grain elevator and the steel plow by John Deere. The University of Chicago and the Case Western Reserve University are important sites when referring to early researches about nuclear power. In Indiana and Ohio, automobile manufacturing was introduced. Automobile manufacturing was centered in Michigan’s Detroit Area. The movable assembly line of Henry Ford became a mark in steel industrial engineering, meat processing, and agricultural machinery manufacturing. The engineering of steel helped in revolutionizing the modern age of mass production build up. Two Chicago-based companies namely Sears Roebuck and Montgomery Ward balanced mass manufacturers with a mass detail form of distribution. The contribution in modern transportation includes the early airplanes of the Wright Brothers. Other popular contributions are the Great Lake Freighters as well as railroad beds made of steel rails and wooden ties. The 19th century Erie Canal as well as the 20th century St. Lawrence Seaway had expanded the engineering scale for a gigantic water-born cargo. Even prior to European immigration, this region has a well-established political economy. The Indians had traded with each other via the broad network of rivers, portages, and lakes that holds goods in the Mexican Gulf as well as in both the coasts of North America. Major exports in the region include western Pennsylvania’s natural oil, copper from the shorelines and islands near Sault Ste. Marie, pipestones of Minnesota, dried cranberries and wild rice from Wisconsin. Since the industrial revolution, this region had been the center for industry. Numerous American and Canadian companies are headquartered all over the area.
US Airlines: Still in the woods, but out of the ‘defaulting on debt covenants’ woods
Posted , comments closed- Meltdown 101: Is airline slump leveling off?
- Airlines waiting for business traveler to return
- Airlines' survival determined by liquidity
- In the airline industry, failure isn't an option, it's a necessity
- As revenues suffer, US hotel industry is likely to report new cost cuts
- United Airlines and other US carriers cope with a cash squeeze.
- Alaska and JetBlue are good, but customers' overall satisfaction with airlines falls
- Despite crisis Paris Air Show will go on
Sep 24, 2009
They couldn’t have known it at the time, but United Airlines and other U.S. carriers were dealt a lucky break last year when an oil shock made it appear they were headed for bankruptcy.
Overseas rivals, who were shielded from stratospheric fuel costs and the collapse of the U.S. dollar at the time, are now months behind the U.S. airline industry in dealing with the aftereffects of the global economic crisis that started as fuel prices fell, analysts said.
International carriers such as Germany’s Lufthansa and Air France-KLM are starting to lay off workers and trim routes as it becomes evident that lucrative international business flying will be depressed for the foreseeable future.
But U.S. airlines are ahead of the game as a result of the steep cuts that carriers started to enact by early summer 2008, when oil seemed headed to $200 a barrel, analysts said.
“It prepared the legacy carriers to dramatically lower costs more than they would have otherwise, and it probably kept a couple of them out of bankruptcy,” said Vaughn Cordle, a former airline pilot who is managing partner and chief analyst for AirlineForecasts.
Of course, U.S. airlines still aren’t flying clear of the economic turmoil that followed Wall Street’s meltdown, analysts said. But benefits from their restructuring are starting to become evident in data released this week by the Bureau of Transportation Statistics.
Chicago-based United Airlines, which cut its workforce more deeply than most of its peers, has seen dramatic improvement in its cost structure, federal data show.
United, a unit of UAL Corp. and the nation’s third-largest carrier, cut 5,600 full-time workers, or 11% of its workforce, in the 12 months preceding July 2009. Northwest Airlines Corp. was the only carrier to cut a larger percentage of workers — 12.5% — as it was absorbed by merger partner Delta Air Lines Inc.
United’s unit costs, a measure of how much it pays to fly passengers, dropped 22% to 12.2 cents per seat mile during the second quarter of 2009, the lowest among network carriers.
The bad news for United: Its revenue, once the highest in the industry, tumbled in proportion to its costs and is now among the lowest of large carriers. Still, United reported a positive operating margin of 4.3% in the second quarter and an operating profit of $172 million, its first such gains in more than a year, BTS data show.
The seven largest U.S. carriers reported an average negative operating margin of 0.5%, according to BTS. That’s not exactly robust, although it is a big improvement from the collective 6.3% negative margin the carriers reported during the year-earlier period.
The improved results have sent U.S. airline shares soaring since early July, but analysts caution that a full rebound for U.S. carriers won’t occur until 2010 at the earliest.
“They’ve been poised [to rebound] for years,” said Roger King, an airline analyst at CreditSights Inc., noting that carriers have cut tens of billions of dollars since the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks without achieving strong earnings. “They’re still hurting on fuel, and there’s nothing they can do about that. They’re hurting on the global economy, and there’s nothing they can do about that.”
Business travel revenue, a key driver of profit, was down 35% to 40% in July for carriers around the world, the International Air Transport Assn. estimates. The trade group estimates that carriers globally will lose $11 billion in 2009.
“They’re still in the woods,” said Cordle of U.S. carriers. “But they’re out of the ‘defaulting on debt covenants’ woods.”
AA raises $2.9 billion, will expand in Chicago, New York, Dallas and Miami
Posted September 18, 2009 , comments closed- NYC joins forces with American Airlines to bump up tourism
- AA announces summer box and bag embargo on certain flights
- American Airlines hires wine expert
- American Airlines to cut US capacity 9 percent
- American Airlines cabins to go cashless
- New flights at Logan Airport in Boston
- American Airlines announces additional flight to Florida's capital
- Airline eliminates 2 Chicago routes
Sep 18, 2009
American Airlines, the world’s second-largest carrier, said it raised $2.9 billion in cash and financing in “a show of strength” and will expand at four U.S. hubs to prepare for a recovery in travel demand.
American parent AMR Corp. rose the most in 11 months in New York trading. Credit-card partner Citigroup Inc. paid $1 billion in an advance purchase of frequent-flier miles, and GE Capital Aviation Services provided $1.6 billion in jet-financing commitments, American said today.
The cash will bolster liquidity for Fort Worth, Texas-based AMR before winter in the U.S., when travel typically slows and carriers tap their reserves to fund operations. Higher-fare business passengers have cut back on flying in the recession, helping drag the biggest U.S. airlines to losses.
“There are signs of improvement in the revenue environment and in consumer sentiment, but the winter season is still potentially a challenging one,” said Douglas Runte, managing director at Piper Jaffray & Co. in New York, who doesn’t rate AMR. “This liquidity raising is an important move.”
‘Show of Strength’
“This is the time for a show of strength,” Chief Financial Officer Tom Horton said in an interview. “As capital flows in this industry, we believe it should flow to the strongest companies. Our company represents that.”
American’s ability to access capital while the airline industry struggles has “taken the liquidity question off the table,” Horton said.
The carrier also has about $2 billion in unencumbered assets should it need to borrow more. AMR expects to have about $3.7 billion in cash and short-term investments at month’s end, including funds for specific uses. It pared debt to $14 billion as of June 30 from $21 billion at the end of 2002.
Details of the mileage sale and aircraft financing weren’t disclosed.
“AMR likely conceded certain terms, potentially on underlying collateral, in order to close the deal as AMR enters its seasonal cash burn period,” said Hunter Keay, a Stifel Nicolaus & Co. analyst in Baltimore who advises holding the shares. “But the near-term benefit of new liquidity will likely far offset any longer-term concessions.”
Hub Flights
American said flights will increase from the hubs at Chicago, New York, Dallas-Fort Worth and Miami, and some regional jets will get first-class cabins. The carrier also will purchase 22 70-seat Bombardier Inc. planes.
Daily departures for mainline jets and regional carrier American Eagle will drop by 46 at St. Louis and 9 at Raleigh/Durham, North Carolina, American said. The carrier said it’s still assessing how many employees will be affected.
Seating capacity in American’s main jet operations will increase 1 percent next year over 2009, the carrier said. Domestic markets will be unchanged, while capacity on international flights, typically the most profitable routes for airlines, will rise 2.5 percent.
The GE Capital Aviation Services agreement will provide funding for Boeing Co. 737-800s being added through 2011 by letting American sell the jets to the General Electric Co. unit and lease them back. American is buying 84 737s, which are 25 percent more fuel efficient than the MD-80s they will replace.
GE’s Role
Boeing 737s use only CFM engines, built by GE’s jet-engine manufacturing venture with Safran SA of France. Fairfield, Connecticut-based GE is the world’s biggest maker of jet engines and the largest aircraft lessor by the number of planes.
The new GE financing also includes $280 million in cash under a loan accord. American put up 10 aircraft as collateral for $225 million of that funding, and will pledge 3 more planes as security next month to tap the remaining $55 million.
American is at least the fifth major U.S. airline since 2008 to raise funds by selling frequent-flier points to credit- card issuers. The miles are distributed as awards for purchases.
Citigroup can use the miles in equal monthly installments from 2012 through 2016. The agreement also extends the New York- based bank’s co-branded credit-card program with American.
The route changes for American and American Eagle will include the addition of 57 daily flights and 12 destinations in 2010 from Chicago’s O’Hare Airport. The airline will add 23 daily departures from Miami, 19 from Dallas-Fort Worth, 7 from John F. Kennedy airport in New York, 2 at New York’s LaGuardia and 2 at Los Angeles.
American didn’t disclose a cost to add first-class cabins to its fleet of Bombardier CRJ700s, allowing the carrier to charge more and compete with UAL Corp.’s United Airlines, which sells the premium tickets on its 70-seat planes from Chicago. American will begin accepting the 22 new CRJ700s in 2010.
“We’re really focused on where you want to be big in the U.S.,” Horton said of American’s emphasis on the four hubs and its base at Los Angeles. “It is a signal for the future as to where this company is going to place its bets.”
U.S.-based carriers slashed flight capacity in 2008 and this year, first in response to record fuel prices and then to better match supply as corporate and leisure business dwindled.
$99 Specials for 9-9-09
Posted September 11, 2009 , comments closedDates like 09-09-09 don’t drop by every other day, which is why they’re so interesting. The Beatles are set to rock Sept 09 with a release of a remastered version of ’Revolution 9′ from The White Album. And many hotels are going all out to milk this human fascination with numerologic and astrological alignments, so we have a bucketload of $99 specials popping up all over the place.
$99 Specials for 9-9-09
Expedia: For just nine days, top 4- and even 5-star hotels are $99 a night—or less. This fall, you can stay in utter luxury while enjoying rock-bottom rates across the globe when you book on Expedia. Book by September 9; travel through September 30, 2009.
Hotels.com: Hundreds of hotels on offer for $99 or less – Book by September 9, 2009 for travel between September 7 – September 30, 2009. The featured hotels include many 3.5 and 4-star hotels in Boston and Orlando, including minty-fresh and new Aloft hotels. There’s also a $10 hotel in Las Vegas…
Speaking of Vegas, Sin City is going nuts over this astrological ‘day of good fortune.’ The La Bella Wedding Chapel at the Las Vegas Hilton is offering a $99 special that includes photos, 2 tickets to the Hilton’s Voices show, and a free witness for the wedding.
And it’s not just Vegas – the number 9 lucky star seems to have spread to Atlantic City too - The Borgata Hotel Casino & Spa, along with sister hotel – the Water Club, is offering a ‘Summer of 99′ special in September – $99 hotel rooms, plus $99 Spa treatments and a chance to win a $999 bonus on the slots. More info here (or call 866-692-6742) and here (call 800-800-8817).
And to make matters worse, the 09-09-09 bug has started spreading on twitter too. The Hard Rock Chicago has a twitter promotion for Sept 09.
Twitter users who re-tweet the message: “RT to win! @HardRockChicago is giving away 9 rooms for $9. Winners selected 9/9/09! #contest #hardrockchicago09” are automatically entered to win one room night at the hotel for a special $9 rate. The nine lucky “tweeters” will be selected at random on the date of 9/9/09.
And then there’s Starwood’s 999 promo – rooms for $9.99. Book by Sept. 9 and valid for stays upto Dec. 27. Participating Starwood brands inlude Westin, Sheraton, Four Points by Sheraton, W, Aloft, Element, Luxury Collection, Le Méridien and St. Regis hotels. Use promo code NIN or visit www.starwoodpromos.com/999.
