5 Top Picks for Christmas Holiday Like a Fairytale

Posted by Andreas Christodoulou

Description :

As the festive period of the year sneaks up on us in a couple of weeks from now, it might be a good idea to plan ahead if you are looking to spend the holidays somewhere special. Not sure on where to go? Then here are some hidden gems to consider if you want to enjoy an experience that resembles the most to a Christmas fairytale like the one you have dreamed about. These are about as close as it gets to the real thing! 

Whichever idea you may have set as the perfect Christmas fairytale, it probably entails white days, warm nights, campfires, theme markets, warm drinks and cozy nights in. It’s a part of what many of us see Christmas as the favorite holiday season– the white ground laden with a magical feeling floating in the air! There are definitely quite a few places that can fit this description, yet we’ve gathered 5 top choices promising to offer majestically Christmas vacation.

Bibuby, Cotswolds, UK

This wonderful rural part of the United Kingdom can feel like a true Christmas special. If you find that you want to enjoy the beauty of Christmas in a fine festive theme, this might be the place to go. With fabulous thatched roofs to the old-school yellow-stone walls, Bibuby is a location that manages to capture that iconic Christmas look in kind.

If you were to receive a post card of this place, you would likely believe it was a fictional location made just for the setting of a Christmas movie, such is the quaint and wonderful nature of the town.

Dinant, Belgium

Dinant, one of the most picturesque towns in Belgium’s Wallonia region is a fine place to visit if you want to experience something that is bound to have that true festive feeling to it. This is a lovely hotspot for winter travel, based just on the beauty of the Meuse River. It looks magnificent during this cold weather, with the shine of the frost coming down and landing perfectly across the ground to make that true Winter Wonderland feeling.

Add in the fact that old ivy-clad castles and forts still stand so proudly here, and you can easily see why people might feel more than comfortable coming here for a winter break. It carries a unique and charming design that is pretty hard to forget, as well as a city that has all the appeal of a true Christmas fairytale story. 

For a picturesque Christmas this year that looks the part, Dinant is the perfect choice.

Rakotz Bridge, Kromlau Town, Germany

Don’t let the name fool you. This stunning bridge called Rakotzbrücke (Devil’s Bridge) as the locals call it can be found in Kromlau, Germany and is one of the most fantastically designed and detailed locations for a festive feeling and shine. It’s got a classy look that can be hard to forget, as well as a fine combination between the beauty of nature and the hardship of man to make that beauty stand out even more than ever before. 

This is a location that manages to fit the two perfectly together. The awesome stone bridge manages to appear almost natural, with a rather uneven look making it appear as if it was all put together without human touch!

For a Christmas wonderland design, this is the perfect place to pick and experience winter tranquility like never before. Constructed over 150 years ago, the bridge itself has a wonderful river below it that reflects wonderfully.

This creates the impression of a circular design – especially in the winter, when the snap of the ground illuminates back up and creates the perfect look down below. Hence, it goes to show that choosing Kromlau and Rakotz Bridge as your travel destination is definitely bound to be one of the most memorable sights at Christmas!

Giethoorn Village, Netherlands

This stunning like Dutch ton in the northeastern province of Overijssel, Netherlands is the perfect place to spend Christmas if you are looking for a place away from the bigger cities and be somewhere far more natural, less bothersome and nowhere near as busy. This stunning little town is known by many as the “Venice of the North” due to the fact that it’s loaded with canals like the famous Italian city.

When the frost of the winter helps to bring this all together and create something exemplary, it does create that truly wonderful Christmas fairytale look. If you arrive before the frost sets in then you can hire a little boat and go along the canals, taking in a winter sight that is truly hard to top.

From the shining lights from the houses and the locals to the stunning reflection of the town on the water, this manages to sell the picture of winter like few other places in this wonderful nation.

If you are going to be in the Netherlands for Christmas, then you should definitely do yourself a favor and pop down to the Giethoorn area to take in one of the most relaxing festive periods around.

Shirakawa Village, Japan

As a location well-known for making the most stunning take on winter-style designs, Japan makes its mark on this list with the pristine and wonderful Shirakawa Village, located in Ōno District, Gifu Prefecture. Easily seen by many as one of the most natural and fitting winter images around, this is a UNESCO World Heritage Site for a good reason. The small traditional village is something that can appear like it came directly from the tomes of a Christmas book, with a welcoming and engaging layout mixed with the tranquil, calm nature of the wilderness.

From stunning farmhouses which are centuries old to the snowcapped roofs that have stood for equally as long, this is a little location that really helps to show everyone what the true heart and beauty of Christmas is.

Final Words

Feel like you want to grab your passport and take the first flight to reach one of these destinations? We know the feeling! If you want Christmas this year to be a little bit more exciting than before, these magical places are worth considering. Obviously, these are just a few locations to check out, but each offers a distinctive and rather amazing Christmas fairytale type holiday for you and your loved ones.

From the comfort and calmness of a festive period to the beauty of lights and layout, the above list can satisfy any curiosity and preference, adding some stardust to your Christmas! Enjoy!

NOW READ: Tech Gadgets That Make Traveling a Breeze

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*by andreascy*

The 5 Most Dangerous Buildings In The World

Posted by Andreas Christodoulou

Description :

Mankind has achieved innumerable architectural marvels over thousands of years. The cutting edge technology used in construction today has not always been required to construct buildings that inspire awe and stagger the mind. However, many great building achievements are as dangerous as they are innovative. In many cases, the element of danger is what provides the construction with such thrilling intrigue. The following buildings are equal in their engineering accomplishments and elements of danger that they present to any visitors who dare enter. 

License: Creative Commons

Cliffside

China is home to the Hanging Temple. This building has stood for more than 1,400 years since the reign of the Northern Wei Dynasty. It faces a sheer drop of nearly 246 feet at the base of Mount Heng. This structure is actually the only temple in existence that serves as a place of worship for three individual religions: Confucianism, Taoism, and Buddhism. The temple is constructed of wood and contains 40 individual halls. Beams have been inserted into hand-chiseled fitting in the rock surface. Visitors brave enough to enter the temple will find over 80 Buddhist statues throughout the structure.

License: Creative Commons

A Stone Tower

At 817 meters above sea level, Lichtenstein Castle in Germany is another structure that seems to totter on the side of a cliff. This castle was not the first to rest on this site. Previous structures had been built and fallen to ruins dating back to about the 1200's. Lichtenstein Castle was commissioned by Duke Wilhelm of Urach in 1840. Although the castle is still under royal ownership, the doors are open to the public that dare to make the trip skywards. Most visitors come for the view and to gaze at the collection of historic German weaponry and armor. Various castles on this site have utilized the popular architectural stylings of their day throughout the years. Lichtenstein adds to its allure high in the sky by employing Neo-Gothic traditions throughout its design.

License: Creative Commons

A Delicate Balance

The Takasugi-an in Japan is perhaps the strangest and most insecure structure ever to be executed. The name literally translates to “a teahouse too high.” It was designed by its architect for his own private use. Built off-site, the one-room building was transported and installed at the top of two chestnut trees. It is constructed primarily of bamboo and plaster, and it can only be accessed by using a single, free-standing ladder that must be propped against the side of one of the supporting trees.

License: Creative Commons

Working on an Incline

As though they were taking a cue from the Leaning Tower of Pisa, the Puerta de Europa or in English, Gate of Europe, in Madrid, Spain features two buildings that lean towards one another at a 15 degree incline. Each tower stands 374 feet tall and features 26 floors. The identical towers hover ominously over pedestrians and drivers who can travel beneath their shadows. The project was completed in 1996 as a joint effort between an American and Spanish architectural firm.

License: Creative Commons

An Icon of Architectural Mistakes

The Leaning Tower of Pisa is yet to collapse. This building is actually a bell tower for a central cathedral that went terribly wrong. It was five years after its initial construction in 1173 that it began it's unintended tilt to one side. The lean is due to the lack of solid ground resting beneath its foundation on one side. This side of the structure sinking into the ground is now submerged by over five feet, giving the 16,000 ton building less than stable footing.

Many of these structures are appealing to visitors for their unique qualities and dangerous appearance. While more adventurous people will flock to these as points of interest in their travels, those people who do not have thrill-seeking tendencies will be much happier enjoying photos from a safe distance on a stable foundation.

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Five of the Best Toshiba Notebook Computers

Posted by Andreas Christodoulou

Description : 

Toshiba, the Japanese electronics giant, manufactures a wide range of electronic products including the notebook laptop. Toshiba's notebook laptops come with the best hardware possible and provide seemingly unlimited processing capabilities. 

Toshiba laptops also provide the best value for money to its customers. Among Toshiba's notebook laptops, five of the best notebook laptops are reviewed in detail here.

1. Toshiba Portege R705-P35

This Toshiba notebook uses one of the fastest processor available in the market place. It uses the Intel i3-370M processor that has a clock speed of 2.40 Ghz and is built with 2 cores. Toshiba portege comes with a hard drive capacity of 500 GB and a RAM capacity of 4GB. The type of memory used is DDR3, which has a speed of 1,066Mhz. It uses a Li-Ion Battery and has the capacity to last for 8 hours. It has a built in Web cam and a memory card reader. It belongs to the LED display type and the display size is 13.3 inches. This Toshiba notebook comes with an Intel Graphics card and an enhanced optical drive in the form of DVD- Super multi drive.

Connectivity Features:

It has the capability to support 4G wireless connectivity and has additional connection options in the form of Ethernet port, HDMI and USB 2.0.

2. Toshiba Satellite A665-S6058

This is one of Toshiba’s best computers period. It has a built in web cam and a memory card reader. The keyboard comes with a numeric 10 key keypad and multi touch touchpad. The speakers used in is this model are the popular Harman speakers that supports Dolby Advanced Audio capabilities. The Battery used is the Lithium-Ion battery that has the capacity to last 4 hours. It has a storage capacity of 500GB and comes with a 4GB DDR3 RAM. The display size is 16 inches and comes with a aspect ratio of 16:9. It comes with the NVIDIA graphics card, manufactured under optimus technology and a DVD Superdrive optical drive system.

Connectivity Features:

This model comes with a Wi-Fi connectivity and other connectivity options including HDMI port, Ethernet port, Headphone output and S-Video capabilities.

3. Toshiba Portege R835-P322

The main features available with this Toshiba model include backlit keyboard, Wireless display capability, memory card reader, fingerprint reader, touch pad mouse, multiple level password utilities and reinforced security cable lock slot. The display size is 13.3 inches and has an associated aspecr ratio of 16:9. The storage capacity is slightly higher than the other models at 750GB. The RAM used is a DDR3 6GB RAM, which can be extended up to 8GB.

Connectivity options:

This Toshiba notebook laptop supports Bluetooth, DLNA and Wi-Fi connectivity and has separate ports for HDMI, USB3.0 and Ethernet connections.

4. Toshiba Satellite E305-S1990X

This Toshiba model comes with Wi-Fi wireless connectivity and supports USB 2.0 and 3.0. Some of the features available include wireless display capability, built -n web cam and back lit keyboard. It has a display size of 14 inches and uses Intel graphics card for running multimedia applications. It weighs 4.9 pounds and has a hard drive capacity of 500GB and a RAM capacity of 4GB with the option of increasing it to 8GB.

Connectivity Options:

This notebook comes with everything you’d expect from Toshiba including Bluetooth, Wi-fi connectivity and DLNA. Plus Ethernet, two USB 3.0 connections and HDMI.

5. Toshiba Satellite P775-S7372

This is another excellent Satellite model that comes with amazing features including 8GB built in RAM, 750GB hard disk capacity, Intel HD graphics chip and the options for providing Wi-Fi connectivity. This notebook uses a Lithium-Ion battery and lasts for 4 hours. The display type is LED and the display size comes to 17.3 inches.

Connectivity Options:

Comes with Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, HDMI, a USB 3.0 socket and DLNA. This is one of the best lower end computers if you want the connectivity of more expensive models.

INTERESTING POST: Why Every College Student Should Have a Notebook Computer

I have recently decided that a Toshiba notebook laptop was the best option and bought the exceptional A665-S6058 model. You should too!

*by andreascy*

Panasonic Eluga V : Power & Life Mobile Devices

Posted by Andreas Christodoulou

Description : 

Panasonic continues to expand its Eluga line of droids. Three summer models are the first to be released under the Japanese carrier NTT Docomo, Eluga power P-07D, ELUGA V P-06D and ELUGA Live P-08D.

The first is the Eluga power P-07D. My hands are a little bit big, but this is a 5-inch display. When you hear that it's 5-inch, you might imagine a bulky device that's hard to hold. But here, the bezel is very thin. So a feature of this model is that you get a 5-inch screen in a smartphone that's a regular size." 

"This model is mainly intended for Business people who are power users. Recently, some customers have said their battery runs down fast. So we've given this model a fast charging capability. It also comes with a dedicated AC adapter, for extra peace of mind."

"Another new model is the ELUGA V P-06D. This comes in various color schemes, as we wanted to offer a rather stylish smartphone. The coloring is intended to appeal to women especially."

"One feature common to both models is a unique application to enhance security. For example, everyone uses passwords, but this application provides better compound security, such as smart card authentication and pattern setting for account locking."

ELUGA Live P-08D :

"Finally, here's the ELUGA Live P-08D. This is designed to give a full-featured video experience. Naturally, it supports 1seg mobile TV, and it's also the first 10-inch model to support NOTTV. We hope this will help to make NOTTV even more widespread."

"This device is intended for families. It includes several illustrated children's books. This is a fun application, so for example, you can read aloud while watching the pictures move."

Source and Video by : 
DigInfoTv
Check also :
Panasonic Eluga Live Tablet hands-on video
NTT DoCoMo launching 19 new devices this summer, brings  Galaxy S III to Japan

*by andreascy*

Toshiba announces 7-inch color e-reader in Japan

Posted by Andreas Christodoulou

Description :

If you're gonna be late to a party, you should at least be fashionably late. That's the mindset behind Toshiba's entry into the dedicated e-reader space with its new 7-inch BookPlace DB50. Toshiba hopes adding an e-reader alongside its existing AT200 and Thrive tablets will push more eyeballs towards the 100,000 or so titles in its BookPlace online bookstore. The ¥22,000 ($284) BookPlace DB50 sports a TFT-LCD screen with an LED backlight, a 1GHz Freescale i.MX535 processor, 8GB of internal flash memory and a microSD slot. The device also measures 120mm wide, 190mm tall, 11mm thick and weighs 330 grams (11.6 ounces), with battery life rated at up to 7.5 hours. Toshiba did not mention the operating system in its release though the hubbub in the Interwebs is that it will use customized versions of Linux and Android Gingerbread. The Japanese debut is pegged for February 10th and the company is apparently considering a release outside the country, too. 

*by andreascy*

Sony quits Organic-Screen (OLED) TV's Business in Japan

Posted by Andreas Christodoulou

Description :

Saying that demand for the XEL-1 OLED TV is slowing in Japan, Sony is stopping OLED TV sales there. They say that overseas sales will continue, but having tried to order one of these, there doesn’t seem to be too much inventory available. 

“Sony said it had stopped production of ultra-thin TVs using organic light-emitting diode (OLED) technology for Japan, just a little over 2 years since it launched its first set." It plans to keep selling the TVs in overseas markets, a spokesman said. 

OLED displays use organic, or carbon-containing compounds that emit light when electricity is applied. They produce crisp images and do not need backlighting, making them slimmer and more energy-efficient than LCDs, the most popular type of flat TV. 

Sony has aimed to become a leader in the technology and positioned the product as crucial in its drive to regain its reputation as an innovator after losing out to Apple Inc. in portable music and Nintendo in video games. 

“I want this world’s first OLED TV to be the symbol of the revival of Sony’s technological process. I want this to be the flag under which we charge forwards to turn the fortunes around,” then president Ryoji Chubachi told a briefing in October 2007. 

It is still technologically difficult to make large OLED panels and to produce them cheaply, limiting their potential as a mass-market product. Sony’s only model is an 11-inch set sold for 200,000 yen ($2,222) in Japan, considerably smaller and more expensive than other flat TVs. 

“As flat panel TVs are getting bigger and cheaper, hurdles for OLED models have become higher, at least in the short term,” said Hisakazu Torii, vice president of Japanese TV market research at DisplaySearch. 

Torii said the next big trend in the market will be 3D TVs and LCD TVs using Light Emitting Diode (LED) backlights, and that mass adoption of TVs with OLED panels is some time off. 

Sony said it would end sales of OLED TV in Japan when inventory runs out. It plans to continue putting money into research and development and production for North America, Europe and other overseas markets. 

“We will continue to consider new products and applications including OLED TVs,” Sony spokesman Shigenori Yoshida said.

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*by andreascy*

Mysterious Subatomic Particles Known As Neutrinos May Be Tachyons

Posted by Andreas Christodoulou

Description :

For a few days in September 2011, it was the biggest story in the world. The little-known OPERA experiment in Gran Sasso, Italy, had just made an electrifying claim - that subatomic particles called neutrinos had travelled faster than the speed of light. Next year, two experiments - MINOS at Fermilab in Batavia, Illinois, and T2K in Japan (pictured) - will be able to test the claim. If it stands up, how should we meld these misbehaving particles with the rest of physics?

One option is via tachyons, hypothetical particles that are born speeding faster than light. It turns out that the speed limit imposed by Einstein's special theory of relativity isn't so much a cap that nothing can exceed as a barrier that nothing can cross. Tachyons were dreamed up to illustrate this: particles born faster than light pose no problem for special relativity as long as they spend their whole lives in the fast lane. 

Are neutrinos tachyons? One way they might be is if the universe is filled with a field that interacts with particles as they fly through it. If photons have more drag in that field than neutrinos do, then neutrinos would naturally outpace the speed of light. This idea may feel familiar : light travels slower in glass than in a vacuum, for instance. So the universe might be permeated with a sort of diffuse glass. 

If neutrinos do turn out to be tachyons, theorists will still have their work cut out. Though they are born speeding, tachyons interfere with another demand of special relativity: that a particle's behaviour be the same no matter where it is facing or how fast it is going. Meanwhile, there is no shortage of other theories scrabbling to explain this most astonishing of results.

READ ALSO: Einstein’s Gravitational Waves Detected: A Breakthrough Discovery

Stay tuned for more! 😉

*by andreascy*

Japan : Rallying for Solar expansion

Posted by Andreas Christodoulou

Description :

The potential for building a completely new energy infrastructure in Japan based on solar and renewable energy technology is being aggressively pushed for with the leader of the movement Masayoshi Son putting forward 1 billion yen of his personal wealth to kick start the process.

Of course this upsets the powerful nuclear industry who were expecting many years of lucrative rebuild contracts as they aimed to replace the ageing stations with third generation technology. The possibility that the wealth will instead be spent on the less powerful Solar industry is causing a lot of hand wringing by the Nuclear Village.

The writing is on the wall though as the Japanese people realise the true extent of the damage that has now been done to their country after 6 months of Toxic Nuclear radiation has been spread throughout the nation be the Toxic Cloud of Death continuing to stream forth from the Fukushima facility. Latest estimate are that over 100,000,000 cubic meters of topsoil will have to be replaced if they want to reclaim the land around Fukushima Facility Number One.

That is a lot of earth to move, and where do they expect to put it? If a hectare is 10000 square meters that means they have to relocate 1000 hectares of dirt. A hectare is a square that measures 100 meters x 100 meters. So the dirt would make a 100mx100m block of earth 1 km high or 100×1000/10 which equals 10000 km long.

Either way no one will want that earth placed next to their house so it looks like they are going to have serious issues with decontaminating the areas that have already been irradiated let alone the ares that are going to be irradiated as the radiation continues to spread outwards from the Fukushima Facility. 

Source: http://atimes.com/atimes/Japan/MI23Dh02.html

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*by andreascy*