Nothing quite prepares you for the impact of the Sagrada Família up close. A fantastical tour de force of the imagination, Antoni Gaudí’s ambitious church has provoked endless controversy. After a lifetime of dedication, the church was only partially complete when Gaudí died in 1926 and, as a work in progress, it offers the unique … Read more

Key Sagrada Família Dates Spiral staircase Detail of doorway, Passion Façade 1882 The first stone of the Sagrada Família is officially laid, with architect Francesc del Villar heading the project. Villar soon resigns after disagreements with the church’s religious founders. 1883 The young, up-and-coming Antoni Gaudí is commissioned as the principal architect. He goes on … Read more

Collections Dinosaurs The popular Dinosaur Gallery, located in the Michael A. Lee-Chin Crystal, is home to almost 20 full dinosaur skeletons, of both marine and land dwellers, including the world’s most complete Maiasaura and her baby, which are thought to be 80 million years old. Hands-On Biodiversity Children and adults alike are encouraged to get … Read more

Guarded by iconic lions, and up a flight of grand stone steps (a favorite local meeting place) is the Midwest’s largest, and one of the USA’s best art museums. Housed in a massive Beaux Arts edifice (currently being renovated and expanded), the Institute has some 260,000 works from around the globe, and is famous for … Read more

It might have lost the world’s tallest building slot to Taipei 101 Tower in Taiwan, thanks to its enormous spire, but Sears Tower is still the tallest if measuring the height from ground to roof – a staggering 1,450 ft (442 m). Designed by Chicago firm Skidmore, Owings & Merrill, the tower uses nine exterior … Read more

In a big room full of candle lights, deep in vegetation flavor, and having warm space with mats and cotton pillows, there were more than twenty people lying and sitting in quite space. Ronin Niwe, a Canadian shaman, was sitting on the top of a semicircle, around him were tools including small glass and a … Read more

The Deutsches Museum, founded by Oskar von Miller in 1903, is housed on an island in the Isar River in a building dating from 1925. The world’s largest museum of technology and engineering is a tour de force – only a fraction of the exhibits can be viewed in a single day. The best approach … Read more

To celebrate the birth of their son in 1664, the Elector Ferdinand Maria and his wife Henrietta Adelaide of Savoy commissioned Agostino Barelli to build a summer palace to the west of Munich. The wings and annexe buildings were added from 1701 onwards. The historic gardens to the rear of the palace beckon for a … Read more

Officially known as the Palace Museum, this magnificent complex is a grand monument to the 24 emperors who ruled from its halls over a period of almost 500 years. The symbolic center of the Chinese universe, the palace was the exclusive domain of the imperial court from its completion in 1420 until the last of … Read more

Forbidden City Collections Imperial throne Musical instruments In true imperial fashion, the more lavish the musical entertainment, the more glory it reflected on the emperor. Court musicians used gongs of all sizes and guqins (zithers), wooden flutes, and heavy bronze bells adorned with dragons, as well as the unusual sheng, a Sherlock Holmes-style pipe with … Read more

Possibly the most famous residential landmark in the world, this dramatic Neo-Classical mansion has been the residence of the US president and family, the seat of executive power, and a working office building for over 200 years. Situated at the nation’s most recognizable address, 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue, the White House reflects the power of the … Read more

This fascinating museum’s 22 main exhibition galleries pay homage to some of the most ingenious and beautifully crafted objects of flight, from the Wright brothers’ airplane to powerful spacecraft. America by Air outlines the history of America’s airline industry including airplanes from the formative years of mechanical flight. Compelling exhibitions put these historic objects in … Read more

A certain aura of authenticity still clings to San Francisco’s old wharf area, but you’ll have to look closely to find the historic details – mostly, it has been overwhelmed by tourism. Nevertheless, it’s fun to get a walk away crab cocktail and a chunk of sourdough bread, and to sidestep the crowds to check … Read more

To the inmates who were confined on this island prison, in operation from 1934 to 1963, their punishment was not only captivity but also psychological torture. After all, they were right in the midst of one of America’s busiest harbors, with small craft darting to and from San Francisco, Oakland, Berkeley, and Sausalito, and they … Read more

“As long as the lime trees still blossom in Unter den Linden, Berlin will always be Berlin,” Marlene Dietrich once sang about this magnificent avenue. Today the lime trees blossom more beautifully than ever in the historical centre of Berlin, because the old buildings along the street have been extensively restored and modern architecture has … Read more

The heart of the new metropolis of Berlin beats on Potsdamer Platz. This square, where Berliners and tourists alike now flock to cinemas, restaurants and shops, was already a hub of urban life in the 1920s. After World War II, it became a desolate wasteland, but since the fall of the Berlin Wall, Potsdamer Platz … Read more

Exhibitions in the Filmmuseum S-Bahn sign Café Josty sign Marlene Dietrich This exhibition of the film star’s estate includes costumes, touring luggage, photographs, letters and notes, posters and film clips. Metropolis This film, directed by Fritz Lang in 1927, has an alarming vision of a future world as its subject. Models and props from the … Read more

The National Gallery has around 2,300 pictures, from the early Renaissance to the Impressionists (1250–1900), forming one of the greatest collections in the world. Containing work by the most important painters of the main European schools, the collection was acquired by the government from John Julius Angerstein in 1824, and moved to the present building … Read more

This is one of the most unexpectedly pleasing galleries in London. Unrelated to the neighbouring National Gallery, it opened in 1856. Well-known names can be put to some not-so-well-known faces, and there are some fascinating paintings from Tudor times to the present day. Royalty is depicted from Richard II (1367–1400) to Queen Elizabeth II, and … Read more

This wonderful collection covers a variety of art forms from the 1848–1914 period, including a superb Impressionists section. Its setting, in a converted railway station, is equally impressive. Built in 1900, in time for the Paris Exposition, the station was in use until 1939, when it was closed and largely ignored, bar its use as … Read more