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events - Photos

Valentine's Day By The Numbers

March 1st 2010 02:24

The origins of Valentine's day probably date back to 270 A.D. when St Valentine was executed for secretly marrying couples. It has become the day on which lovers express their love for each other by presenting various gifts.
Valentine's Day has also become a very sweet day for retailers across the globe with massive profits made on flowers, cards, chocolate, teddy bears and many other items.
The info-graphic below sourced from Bill Shrink offers a detailed insight into what St Valentine's Day really means to the modern world.

Click to open the full sized infographic in a new window.

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Posted By: Ian - Category: events

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Satellite Photos of Haiti Before and After the Earthquake

January 19th 2010 06:40

The 2010 Haiti earthquake was a catastrophic magnitude 7.0. Its epicentre was approximately 25 km (16 miles) west of Port-au-Prince, the capital of Haiti. The earthquake occurred on Tuesday, 12 January 2010. The United States Geological Survey recorded a series of at least 33 aftershocks, fourteen of them between magnitudes 5.0 and 5.9. It is estimated that about three million people were affected by the quake, and that up to 200,000 have died as a result of the disaster. Several prominent public figures are among the dead.

The earthquake caused major damage to Port-au-Prince. Most major landmarks were significantly damaged or destroyed, including the Presidential Palace, the National Assembly building, the Port-au-Prince Cathedral, and the main jail. Compounding the tragedy, most hospitals in the area were destroyed. Because the organizational structures in Haiti had been destroyed, it has been called the worst disaster the UN had ever been confronted with.

Through the nights following the earthquake, many people in Haiti slept in the streets, on sidewalks, in their cars, or in makeshift shanty towns either because their houses had been destroyed, or they feared standing structures would not withstand aftershocks. Haiti is one of the poorest nations in the world, and construction standards are low.

These satellite images and information showing Haiti before and after the devastating quake were sourced from this article at wired science.

Multiple buildings have clearly collapsed in this area of Port-au-Prince, and several more appear ready to crumble. Numerous strong aftershocks of magnitude 5 and up have continued to bring down buildings that were damaged and weakened by the mainshock. Below, the same area is shown in 2008.

People gather in the Champs de Mars plaza adjacent to the National Palace after Tuesday’s earthquake. The plaza contains statues of Haiti’s founding fathers, the French embassy and museums. Below, the area looks serene in 2008.

The Stade Sylvio Cator is a 30,000-seat sports arena used for soccer games. Above it is shown surrounded by fallen buildings and rubble Wednesday. People gather on the field, probably camping there after losing their homes or out of fear that their homes could collapse during an aftershock. The stadium is shown below in 2008.

This building near the National Palace in the city centre was completely destroyed.

*This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article for 2010 Haiti earthquake.

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Posted By: Ian - Category: events

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Oktoberfest

October 12th 2009 23:53

Oktoberfest is a sixteen-day festival held each year in Munich, Germany during late September (and running to early October). It is one of the most famous events in Germany and the world's largest fair, with some six million people attending every year, and is an important part of Bavarian culture. Other cities across the world also hold Oktoberfest celebrations, modelled after the Munich event.

The Munich Oktoberfest, traditionally, takes place during the sixteen days up to and including the first Sunday in October. In 1994, the schedule was modified in response to German reunification so that if the first Sunday in October falls on the 1st or 2nd, then the festival will go on until October 3 (German Unity Day). Thus, the festival is now 17 days when the 1st Sunday is October 2 and 18 days when it is October 1. The festival is held on an area named the Theresienwiese (field, or meadow, of Therese), often called d’ Wiesn for short.

Visitors also eat huge amounts of traditional hearty fare such as Hendl (chicken), Schweinsbraten (roast pork), Haxn (knuckle of pork), Steckerlfisch (grilled fish on a stick), Würstel (sausages) along with Brezeln (Pretzel), Knödeln (potato or bread dumplings), Käsespätzle (cheese noodles), Reiberdatschi (potato pancakes), Sauerkraut or Rotkraut (red cabbage) along with such Bavarian delicacies as Obatzda (a fatty, spiced cheese-butter concoction) and Weisswurst (a white sausage).

Thanks to Boston.com, here are some pictures from Oktoberfest 2009. Many more pictures and images can be seen in this article.

Munich mayor Christian Ude taps the first beer barrel on the first day of the Oktoberfest in Munich

Visitors crowd the Bäurosl beer tent on the second day of the Oktoberfest beer festival on September 20

A traditional Bavarian band plays during the marksmen's parade

Young women in traditional dirndl dresses pose with beer mugs

A woman sips her beer

*This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article for Oktoberfest.

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Valentine's Day

February 14th 2009 06:56

Valentine's Day has become the traditional day on which lovers express their love for each other. Modern symbols Valentine's Day include doves, Cupid, and most importantly the heart shape. Here are some hearts found in different places.

Valentine’s Day Hearts - Sky writing/ Clouds

*Images sourced from Damn Funny Pictures.

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4th of July Over Lake Austin

July 23rd 2008 02:32

Beautiful picture of 4th of July celebrations over Lake Austin in Texas.

4th of july fireworks - Lake Austin Texas

*This image used with permission from Damn Funny Pictures.

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New Year's Eve Around the World

December 31st 2007 00:39

As today is New Year's Eve, the biggest parties ever will be taking place all over the world.
Let's take a look at what you can expect to see in some major cities around the globe.

[ Click here to read more ]

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Christmas Wallpapers

December 10th 2007 11:27

Here is a collection of fantastic Christmas themed wallpapers for your desktop. Click on each image to open up a larger version to download.
If you like these, you can find many more here.

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Posted By: Ian - Category: events

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Bonfires for Guy Fawkes Night and Halloween

November 1st 2007 13:13

A bonfire is a large controlled outdoor fire. The word is believed to be a corruption of "bone fire" (from Old English bān-fyr, literally "bone fire". The tradition is believed to derive from the Celtic festival of Samhain when animal bones were burnt to ward off evil spirits. It remains a Halloween tradition in the United States. In Great Britain, bonfires are particularly associated with Guy Fawkes Night (also known as fireworks night or bonfire night), an annual commemoration of the discovery of the Gunpowder Plot on 5 November 1605. In Sussex they are particularly associated with the execution of Protestant martyrs. In Northern Ireland, they are associated with celebrations on the anniversary of the Battle of the Boyne, which took place on 12 July 1690. Along with the Maypole, it is an important component of the Wiccan and Neopagan celebration of Beltaine, also known as May Day. In the United States, a bonfire is often held at the end of a Homecoming rally.

On Christmas Eve in Southern Louisiana, bonfires are built along the Mississippi River levees to light the way for Santa Claus as he moves along the river with his skiff pulled by eight alligators. This tradition is an annual event in St. James Parish, Louisiana

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Endangered Animals

October 8th 2007 11:52

The conservation status of a species is an indicator of the likelihood of that endangered species not living. Many factors are taken into account when assessing the conservation status of a species; not simply the number remaining, but the overall increase or decrease in the population over time, breeding success rates, known threats, and so on.
An endangered species is a population of an organism which is at risk of becoming extinct because it is either few in number, or threatened by changing environmental or predation parameters.
Below are pictures of some of the more well known critically endangered species of the planet. Only a few of the many species at risk of extinction actually make it to these sorts of lists and obtain legal protection. Many more species become extinct, or potentially will become extinct, without gaining public notice

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Posted By: Ian - Category: events

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Carnival of Venice

October 13th 2006 03:36

The carnival of Venice was first recorded in 1268. The subversive nature of the festival is reflected in the many laws created over the centuries in Italy attempting to restrict celebrations and often banning the wearing of masks.

Masks have always been a central feature of the Venetian carnival; traditionally people were allowed to wear them between the festival of Santo Stefano (St. Stephen's Day, December 26) at the start of the carnival season and midnight of Shrove Tuesday. The Carnival of Venice itself starts on February 2nd and ends on Shrove Tuesday

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Aulendorf Medieval Festival

August 3rd 2006 03:05

Aulendorf is a town in the district of Ravensburg in Baden-Württemberg, Germany. It is situated 20 km southwest of Biberach an der Riß, and 19 km north of Ravensburg.
Every year this town in changes for a few days into the medieval times, known as Spectaculum Aulendorf. Below are a few photos from the festival. If you're interested, more Spectaculum Aulendorf pictures can be found here.

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Posted By: Ian - Category: events

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2004 Indian Ocean Tsunami

May 30th 2006 06:51

The 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake, which had a magnitude of 9.15, triggered a series of lethal tsunamis on December 26, 2004 that killed approximately 230,000 people (including 168,000 in Indonesia alone), making it the deadliest tsunami in recorded history. The tsunami killed people over an area ranging from the immediate vicinity of the quake in Indonesia, Thailand and the north-western coast of Malaysia to thousands of kilometres away in Bangladesh, India, Sri Lanka, the Maldives, and even as far as Somalia, Kenya and Tanzania in eastern Africa. The disaster prompted a huge worldwide effort to help victims of the tragedy, with billions of dollars being raised for disaster relief.

The animation below demonstrates the Indian Ocean Tsunami.
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Tomatina in Bunol

May 3rd 2006 04:14

PAINTING THE TOWN RED!

The world record for the largest food fight was squashed when the Tomatina, the annual tomato festival, beat its own record for most participants. 38,000 people descended on the usually sleepy Spanish town of Bunol – along with 125 tonnes of tomatoes to hurl at each other.
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