Verona is located in the northern part of Italy, between Venice and Milan. It is one of the main tourist destinations in northern Italy and It is crossed by a beautiful river, the Adige that goes throw Verona. It is surrounded in the distance by snowcapped mountains and It is really easy to access it because the train station is close to the downtown and you can walk right into the heart of downtown. Because of the value and importance of its many historical buildings, Verona has been named a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Verona preserved many ancient Roman monuments including the magnificent Arena.
The city is famous as it is the place where William Shakespeare set his play Romeo and Juliet. In the downtown we can see the Giulietta’s balcony. Entered through a little arched passageway set inside Casa di Giulietta’s main courtyard, the small statue of a girl is a favorite for visitors. Found just a few feet from the balcony from which she and Romeo first confessed their love. Before even entering the courtyard you will notice the walls covered with tickets and love letters left by lovers around the world.
Symbol of the city, the Verona Arena attracts millions of visitors every year, not only for its beauty and history but also for the important events and concerts it hosts. Today it can accommodate about 20,000 spectators thanks to its elliptical shape: it is the third largest Roman amphitheater, after the Colosseum and the Capua Amphitheater. Among the events, not to be missed is the famous Opera Festival, which every summer transforms the Verona Arena into the largest open-air opera house in the world!
by Mabel Chinaglia (from Italy) & Fabian Furrer (from Switzerland)
Switzerland:
Switzerland is a landlocked mountainous country in South-Central Europe, bordered by Austria, France, Germany, Italy, and Liechtenstein.
With an area of 41,285 km², the country is just slightly smaller than the Netherlands.
Switzerland has a population of 8.6 million people (in 2019), capital city is Bern; the largest city is Zürich. Spoken languages are German, French, Italian and Rumantsch, traditionally spoken in the different regions (cantons) of the country. According to the World Happiness Report 2021, the Swiss Confederation is officially the third-happiest nation on Earth, after Finland and Denmark.
Italy:
Italy is located in southern Europe on the Apennine Peninsula. Italy has international borders with Austria, France, the Holy Seat (Vatican City), San Marino, Slovenia, and Switzerland. It also shares maritime borders with Albania, Algeria, Croatia, Greece, Libya, Malta, Montenegro, Spain, and Tunisia.
Two of the largest Mediterranean islands belong to Italy, Sardinia in the west and Sicily in the south. The country covers an area of 301,318 km² (116,340 sq. mi.), compared, it is about 80% the size of Japan.
Italy has a population of more than 59.6 million people in 2020, the capital and largest city is Rome. Other major cities are Florence, Milan, Naples, and Venice. Spoken language is Italian and Ladino.
1. The Matterhorn
The Matterhorn, Switzerland’s iconic pointed peak is one of the highest mountains in the Alps. On the border with Italy, this legendary peak rises to 4,478 meters, and its four steep faces lie in the direction of the compass points.
2. Via Krupp, Capri
While the risk of tumbling rocks means you can no longer stroll the elegant switchback bends that make up Via Krupp, that doesn’t stop the view at the top from being any less spectacular. Head up to the Augustus Gardens and gaze out at the best of Capri laid before you.
3. Jungfraujoch
One of the most popular things to do in the beautiful Bernese Oberland is the train journey to Jungfraujoch, the “Top of Europe,” with an observation terrace and scientific observatory perched at 3,454 meters. The longest glacier in Europe, the Great Aletsch Glacierbegins at Jungfraujoch, and is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
4. Isola Bella, Sicily
Isola Bella is a pinprick of an island with more than its fair share of natural beauty. So-called ‘The Pearl of the Ionian Sea’
5. Bern
In a stunning location, perched on a peninsula of the River Aare, the Swiss capital of Bern exudes old world charm, and the city’s medieval old town is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
6. Ostuni, Puglia
A white-washed hilltop town, it could be Greece on first glance. The joy of Ostuni is discovering its alleys and pretty buildings as you wander the streets and absorb the atmosphere. There’s plenty to see, and a lively buzz to enjoy. The clean beaches of the coast are just a few minutes away
7. The Rhine Falls
Spanning 150 meters, the Rhine Falls (Rheinfall) at Schaffhausen are the largest falls in Central Europe. The best time to visit is during June and July when the mountain snow melts, and the falls swell in volume to spill over a 21-meter-high ledge.
8. Burano, Venice
Many international magazines include Burano among the top 10 most colorful cities in the world, although it would be more appropriate to bring it within the first 10 most colorful places in the world
9. Swiss Grand Canyon
The Ruinaulta (also known as the “Swiss Grand Canyon”) is a deep gorge surrounded by expansive meadows and forested cliffs. Located in Eastern Switzerland, it was created over 10,000 years ago—when the Ice Age Rhine Glacier retreated, it led to a chain of events that resulted in a massive rockslide in the Rhine Valley. As the Rhine river seeped through the rock walls, the gorge was filled with water.
10. Lake Como
Lake Como, also known as Lario, is the third largest of the Italian lakes (after Lake Garda and Lake Maggiore). With a maximum depth of approximately 410 meters, Lake Como is one of the deepest lakes in Europe.
San Francisco is called City by the Bay for its location on the bay and this city should be an essential stop on your route along the West Coast of the United States.
If you are going to visit San Francisco nowadays, there are a few things you will definitely want to see:
The Golden Gate Bridge.
The first to see, of course is the majestic Golden Gate. Did You Know the US Navy was planning to paint this famous bridge in black and yellow stripes?!
The reason was is that the weather was frequently foggy; but before, the bridge had to be painted in red to protect the steel. The architect liked its appearance so much that he decided to leave it as the final color, “International Orange.”
The Pier 39
Put this spectacular Place on your list of your things to Do in San Francisco, with Sea Lions, Waterfront Seafood Restaurants, Top Shopping, Attractions and Bay views, Including The Aquarium of the Bay.
PIER 39 Was Named the Most-Visited attraction in San Francisco by San Francisco Travel Association’s 2019 Visitor Profile Study.
San Francisco Seven´s Painted Ladies
They have always been referred to as the Seven Painted ladies, However, It Seem This Name Took hold in 1978 When Authors Elizabeth Pomada and Michael Larsen Wrote a Book about These Homes.
Other Painted Ladies Can Be Found in Many Other Cities, But You Asking Yourself Why? Because Painted Ladies Does Not Refer to These Homes in particular. All Homes Made in The Victorian or Edwardian Architectural Style that has at Least Colors or More.
And One of the Seven Painted Ladies Has a Tiny Museum, Could you Guess Which It Is? That Will Be Your Next Homework When You Are There.
Chinatown
Did You Know That San Francisco Has The Most Hugest The China Town Outside of Asia? There Live More Than 100.000 People and Besides That, This Is The Oldest of North America.
When You are There, You cannot miss the opportunity to Take a Picture in The Precious Door Dragon´s Gate.
Handball is a team sport in which two teams of seven payers each (six outcourt and one goalkeeper) passing a ball using their hands with the objective to throw the ball in the goal of the other team. A usual game is including two periods of 30 min. Modern Handball is played on a court of 40 by 20 meters and at the end of both sides is a goal in the middle. Each goal has a 6-meter zone where just the goalkeeper is allowed to stand in. If you want to throw the ball in the goal, and score, than you have to throw the ball away before you step in the zone. This type of sport is an indoor activity. The game is fast and high-scoring. High qualified teams are scoring between 20-30 goals in one hour. Body contact is permitted in the whole game. It’s very important to defend your attackers. This sport is more brutal than a lot of people think. There is no equipment mandated, even though there is a lot of body contact used.
The game was invented in the 19th century in Denmark. The first official match was played in Germany in the same year. The first international games were played under these rules for men in 1925 and for women in 1930. Since 1972, Handall has been part of the summer Olympics in Munich. The sport is very common in a lot of European countries.
Andy Schmied one of the best players in the world.
Rules:
To win the game you have to follow a viarity of rules which are:
After you received the ball, you have to pass, keep possession, or shoot the ball.
The players aren’t allowed to touch the ball with the feet, otherwise possession of the ball goes to the other team. Only the goalkeeper is allowed to do it as long as it is in the 6-meter zone.
If you are in possession of the ball, you have to dribble or make your three steps.
The ball may not be allowed to pass back to the goalkeeper when he is standing in the zone.
Notable scoring opportunities can occur when attacking players jump into the goal area. For example, an attacking player catch a pass while launching inside the goal area, and then shoot or pass before touching the floor.
A standard match has two 30-minute halves with a 10- or 15-minute halftime intermission. At half-time, teams switch sides of the court as well as benches. If a decision must be reached in a particular match, and it ends in a draw after regular time, there are at maximum two overtimes, each consisting of two straight 5-minute periods with a one-minute break in between. If this not the end of the game, there will be a penalty shootout. Each team has three time-outs per game. During the game you can substitute players as much as you want.
Left and right wingman (LW/RW). These typically are fast players who are good at ball control and wide jumps from the outside of the goal in order to get into a better shooting perspective at the goal.
Left and right backcourt (LB/RB). Goal attempts by these players are typically made by jumping high and shooting over the defenders. Normally, it is advantageous to have tall players with a powerful shot for this position.
Centre backcourt (CB). A player with experience is perfect on this position who acts as playmaker.
Pivot(P). This player tends to help with the defence, setting picks and helps to disrupt the offense’s formation. This position requires the least jumping skills; but ball control and physical strength are the most required.
If you have the chance to play this sport, take the opportunity and have fun. It’s a fast and dynamic sport how have a lot of changes and variety in each game. It is not easy to be successful and not a sport with which you can be a millionaire like soccer. If you want to be successful you have to start when you are young and it has to be your passion.
Handball is one of my favorite sports, and that’s why I used to play it for a long time. It’s a very active, challenging, high scoring and fun sport. I live playing in a team, that’s why I choose this sport. It’s metal thinking, push each other and let your aggression out. There are a lot of tricks, but patience to learn all these and to use it in the match. All the time there is something to do. You speak a lot during the game, that you act together as a team, that’s the most important thing. I played as a left backcourt. You take focus on a strong shoot and jumping high. The possession is perfect for me, because I’m tall, so I can throw the ball over the others.
It’s a very small island, near Sicily in the Mediterrean sea. They used to be under British rule but they have been Independent since 1964. So everyone speaks English, locals can also speak Malterese, which sounds like Arabic, English and Italian. The climate of Malta is typically Mediterranean, with hot, dry summers, warm and sporadically wet autumns, and short, cool winters with adequate rainfall. So the best time to go there is during summer and spring.
I went there for the first time with my friends three years ago. We loved it as much as we came back every past year there during summer , so for 3 consecutive years we had our vacation there in July or August for two weeks. We met a lot of people who were from everywhere, like Spain, France and Italy, so it was good also for new friendships!
There’s not a lot of things to do, but we liked the people, stay there in the beach and the atmosphere. During the night you can have fun in a famous part of the Island called Paceville, in which you can find a lot for pub, disco and cool restaurants:
During the day indeed you can visit some beaches, there’s not a lot of it, but these are so good. For example: Mellieha, Golden bay and Ramla bay. There are another different beaches you can visit which aren’t with sand but with rocks, still so beautiful to visit and stay there. Melliha is the famous one, It’s pretty good but alway crowded, so I don’t really like it, I prefer another beach called Golden bay, everybody doesen’t want to go there beacuse it’s take a lots of time go there and the way it’s pretty difficult.
Malta is very famous for its history, it has a lot of museums and archaeological sites, I went to all of them. It was a really interesting and great visit even if you have to walk a lot. These are the name of archaeological sites that I think everyone has to visit if come to Malta: Scorba, Ta Hagrat, Hagar Qim and Tarscen,
There’s some photo:
Also Malta, being in the mediterrian, has very good food. The typical meal is the Ftira panino, a typical sandwich in which there are olives, tomatoes, tuna capers and olive oil. I tried it and It’s so good! Another typical meal is fish, every type of fish, all the maltenese people are so good at cooking it. There are also some good Pizzeria, even if you are not in Italy you have to try it because they are so good at cooking it!
You can arrive in Malta easily with its airplane company called AirMalta, you can find a really good price and it’s so comfortable. Probably the travel in an airplane might be turbulent because of the wind in the sea.
As far as your money goes, Malta is one of the best buys in Europe. All the meals are under €10 ($13), guesthouses for €60 ($79) per night. Plus cheap local wine and lots of pastizzi (ricotta-filled pastries) and pizza for less than a euro each! So yeah I really love Malta also for this, all the things are so cheap.
Death Metal is a heavy metal subgenre. It is supposed to be more brutal and violent than any other kind of Metal subgenre and any other kind of music. Most of the time, Death Metal is labeled as brutal music without any means or purpose, listened to by beer-drinker dolts or violent brainless yobs. Nevertheless, in spite of the violence of the genre, this music is quite complex and the brutality is used to emphasize some themes that are very important to the bands. Furthermore, the listeners aren’t as dumb as some people may think. In concert, Death Metal fans just like to enjoy the flow of the music with some Heavy Metal rifs, such as the circle pit, the mosh pit or the Wall of Death… Today, I’m going to share with you some of my favourite titles from the best Death Metal bands to introduce you to this unfairly misunderstood genre . So be prepared for a good dose of heavy and loud music!
There is an exemple of a good Wall of Death, not as violent as it seems.
Death (Florida 1983-2001)
“Death,” with their first album “Scream Bloody Gore” released in 1987, created Death Metal (even though there is a debate where some people argue that the first true Death Metal album is “Seven Churches” (1985) by “Possessed,” However, I don’t consider this band as the creators of the genre.) Death was led by the talented guitarist-singer Chuck Schuldiner, who brought more and more virtue to the genre throughout every album. He is a legend to guitar players and people who want to emulate him. None of these albums are bad. They’re all unique and will uplift you. My personal favourite is their first album, but if you’re not really into sheer violence, you can begin your path with “Human,” released in 1991. If you like this album, you should listen to all of them. This song below is the one that introduced me to “Death”:
Cannibal Corpse (New York/ Florida 1988)
This band is one of the most well-known bands when you begin to get into Heavy Metal. Cannibal Corpse is also known for being a Brutal Death Metal band and for their graphic album covers drawn by Vince Locke. In fact, their lyrics are quiet graphic as well, telling us some gory and chilling stories, surrounded by the violence of the music to emphasize the violence of the stories (“Inhumane Harvest,” for instance, talks about kidnapping people for their organs as if they were cattle. If you’re sensible, do not watch the video clip), sung with a deep growly voice. I know for sure that it doesn’t fit everybody, however, I’ll make you discover the track “Scourge of Iron” from the 2012 album “Torture,” a heavy, but very technical track.
Obituary (Florida 1984)
Another band from Florida. In fact, most of the first Death metal bands come from the city of Tampa in Florida, and Obituary is one of the founding fathers of the genre. The band is different from the other ones because of the atypic growl of the singer John Tardy. With their album “Wolrd Demise” released in 1994, Obituary talks about the pollution problem that were occuring back in the 90’s (which had worsen more and more up to our days). This band is also special to me, because it’s one of the band that helped me to get into Heavy Metal, thanks to their cartoonish video clip “Violence”, a good title to describe the track and the band.
Cattle Decapitation (San Diego 1996)
Finally, a Death metal band from the West-cost. This band is labeled as Brutal Death Metal, and for sure, the music is as brutal as the lyrics are. Indeed, this band is mostly writing about the negative effects of human beings on our planet, we can say that they’re kind of misanthropic. Cattle Decapitation portrays throughout their album some distopian worlds where either animals are taking the control over humans or where Earth is giving back to humans everything they’ve done towards the Earth. The better example -and the best album in my opinion- would be “Death Atlas”, such a technical, beautiful and bitter album wich manages to spread the feelings of the band about this theme. In this album from 2019, it seems that they’ve predicted the current COVID event with “Bring Back The Plague”. However, I want to make you discover my favourite track “The Genocide”.
Sepultura(Belo Horizonte 1984)
We will now leave the United States for Brazil! Sepultura is the first band that my father showed me, back when I was still a child and a novice. This band is the biggest Metal band in South America. Always reinventing themselves, they were adding some tribal rime into their music as they were progressing throught time. Being born in Bazil, the membres are pollitically involved because of the corrupsion, propaganda and dictatorship’s issues. They’re lyrics often talk about repression, dictature, but also the Brazilian/ tribal pride.Nevertheless, a lot of the first hours fans do not continue to listen to Sepultura nowadays, because their first frontman, the great Max Cavalera, left the band in 1996, because of some issues with the band (after that, he began different project, whom “Soulfly”, “Cavalera Consperacy” with his brother, former drummer of Sepultura, who left some years after his brother, and “Killer be killed” for my favourites). He was replaced by Derrick Green (who is a great singer as well). The last album with Max Cavalera was “Roots” in 1996, the albums that would follow are considered less good, however, in my opinion, the best album of this era is their last, “Quadra”, released in 2020. However, I’m gonna to share with you the track “Territory” from Chaos A.D. (1993).
Gojira(Ondres 1996)
We end up this retrospective with a French band, and one of the most well-known Death Metal band in the world, having, for instance, opened for Metallica. Such as Cattle Decapitation, this band cares a lot about the Earth and the marine’s life, showed with tracks like “Flying Whales” or “Toxic Garbage Island”. They’re playing a Progressive Death Metal, a screaming voice rather than growling one, even though it’s quite complicated to find the limit between both of them, and some new guitare sounds that you won’t here anywhere else. They’re really close to natural theme and tribal rime, listening a Gojira’s album is a trully transcendantal experience, they manage to fill you up with a lot of emotions and the result is breathtking. The best exemple is their 2012 album “L’enfant Sauvage” (French Words which mean “The wild child”). This album is one of my favourite and it’s the one that I recommand you if you want to listen to Gojira, with the mezmerizing track “The Gift of Guilt”, a song so powerful that it could make you cry and relax you by the same time.
With this little selection, I hope you will be interessed by this new genre of music that is not the most listened nowadays. I wanted to share with you my passion and introduce you this genre which can deal with a lot of very deep subjects. If Death Metal interessed you, just search some more band who could fit more with what you research in music, I’ve just shared you some of my favourite band, there is some more that you can search if you want to discover more, it’s a very wide world:
One of the line-up of Death, the creators of Death Metal.One of the softest Cannibal Corpse cover that I could find. You can find some more in the internet if you’re curious!The Back of the last Sepultura’s album “Quadra” with their iconic S shape logo, one of the best logo that could exist!
Today, I am going to talk about my home city, Popayán. I will show you our culture,typical food and our main traditions.
Popayán is a small city in the south of Colombia. It is one of the oldest cities in Latin America as well with almost 500 years since it was founded. We have a religious and traditional culture inherited from Spain, but also a mix of them between black and native people. This city has been my home my whole life and I am so glad for that.
The Pubenza Carnival began as a celebration of the multiculturalism of my city. It starts in the first week of January. We have parades, cultural shows, singers,dj’s and some parks to play with Carioca,talcos,and colors. At night we have clubs, shows and many places to drink.
TYPICAL FOOD
CARANTANTA: It Is a corn tortilla. EMPANADAS DE PIPIAN:It Is empanada that you can find just in Popayán.NOCHE BUENA :It is a combination of fried in syrup with puff pastry. This dish is only made in December.
My name is Nico and today I want to write about my top 4 songs and why they are worthy to be on your playlist.
My favorite one of them all is “Rewrite The Stars” by Zac Efron and Zendaya. With it’s catchy track and emotions, it is a perfect song for a lonely night when you’re thinking about your crush or boyfriend/girlfriend. It is perfect for duets and you can put your full mood into it.
My second choice is “All I want” by Lauren Spencer-Smith. Lauren put all her emotions into this song and you can really hear it. Just a perfect song if you are in the: I hate my ex, but I miss him/her mood, as well as for an emotional solo performance in your room or even at the talent show of your school.
Mt third place is “Pancakes for Dinner” by Lizzy McAlpine. I love the acoustics in the background and the words that she used to write the song. Here as well, written and sung with emotion. The voice just fits the song perfectly. Perfect to sing in a sad phase of the day/week. I can identify myself with this song, because I flew to the United States and who knows, maybe I will sing this song to somebody after my journey.
My fourth place is “What Christmas Means” by Paige Gold. This is my absolutely favorite Christmas song. With it’s almost normal track, you could listen to it the whole season. It’s a song that won’t get out of your head as you listen to it even once.
Since I started to travel with my family and even alone visiting different countries, I had never felt that freedom to do whatever I wanted to without asking my parents or my guardian at that moment. Then I found EF last year ( 2019), and I planned my trip to go to Malta with them to study English. I chose Malta because it was the cheapest course they offered me at that moment. Even though I didn’t know anything about Malta ( like the location, culture, weather, even the main language where they also speak English), I decided to travel there.
When I arrived in Malta, I was so nervous because my English at that moment wasn’t good. The first person I met there was my host mom when I showed up at her house ,which was 20 minutes walking towards the school, then my roommate that night. The class schedule for each week , EF had prepared a welcome party on Mondays, a midweek party on Wednesdays and another on Fridays. Thanks to them I met lovely new people easily and make new friends.
Malta is an archipelago located in the central Mediterranean below Italy. It’s famous for its diving, architectural sites, and festivals. Malta is also a popular film location. Some films like Gladiator, Troy, Pirates of the Caribbean, and Game of Thrones have scenes filmed on their landscapes. I could visit some of the most famous places.
Valleta is the capital of Malta
Popeye village
Malta has been the most awesome experience in my life for the moment. I got to know new different cultures, meet lovely people who are still my friends, and I created unforgettable memories that will last forever.
efsantabarbaranews.com 