Florence, Populous City in Tuscany

Florence (Italian: Firenze [fiˈrɛntse] ( listen), alternate obsolete form: Fiorenza; Latin: Florentia) is the capital city of the Italianregion of Tuscany and of the province of Florence. It is the most populous city in Tuscany, with approximately 370,000 inhabitants, expanding to over 1.5 million in the metropolitan area.^[2]

Located on the banks of the River Arno, Florence is famous for its history and especially its importance in the Middle Ages and during the Renaissance, its art and architecture and, more generally, for its cultural heritage. A centre of medieval European trade and finance and one of the wealthiest cities of the time,^[3] Florence is considered the birthplace of the Renaissance, and has been called the Athens of the Middle Ages.^[4] A turbulent political history includes periods of rule by the powerful Medici family, and numerous religious and republican revolutions. From 1865 to 1870 the city was also the capital of the recently established Kingdom of Italy.

The historic centre of Florence attracts millions of tourists each year, and Euromonitor International ranked the city as the world's 72nd most visited in 2009, with 1,685,000 visitors.^[5] It was declared a World Heritage Site UNESCO in 1982. Due to Florence's artistic and architectural heritage, it has been ranked by Forbes as one of the most beautiful cities in the world,^[6] and the city is noted for its history, culture, Renaissance art and architecture and monuments.^[7] The city also contains numerous museums and art galleries, such as the Uffizi Gallery and the Pitti Palace, amongst others, and still exerts an influence in the fields of art, culture and politics.^[8]

Florence is also an important city in Italian fashion,^[8] being ranked within the top fifty fashion capitals of the world;^[9] furthermore, it is also a major national economic centre,^[8] being a tourist and industrial hub. In 2008, the city had the 17th highest average income in Italy.^[10]

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Bird’s Eye view of Abu Dhabi

Abu Dhabi (Arabic: أبو ظبي‎ Abu Dhabi), meaning Father of Deer,^[3] is the capital and the second largest city of the United Arab Emirates in terms of population and the largest of the seven member emirates of the United Arab Emirates. Abu Dhabi lies on a T-shaped island jutting into the Persian Gulf from the central western coast. The city proper had an estimated population of 896,800 in 2009.^[4]

Abu Dhabi houses important offices of the federal government, and is the seat for the United Arab Emirates Government and the home for the Abu Dhabi Emiri Family and the President of the UAE from this family. Abu Dhabi has grown to be a cosmopolitanmetropolis. Its rapid development and urbanisation, coupled with the relatively high average income of its population, has transformed Abu Dhabi to a larger and advanced metropolis. Today the city is the country's center of political, industrial activities, and a majorcultural, and commercial centre due to its position as the capital. Abu Dhabi alone generated 56.7% of the GDP of the United Arab Emirates in 2008.^[5][6]

Abu Dhabi is home to important financial institutions such as the Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange, the Central Bank of the United Arab Emirates and the corporate headquarters of many companies and numerous multinational corporations. One of the world's largest producers of oil, Abu Dhabi has actively attempted to diversify its economy in recent years through investments in financial services and tourism. Abu Dhabi is the second most expensive city for expatriate employees in the region, and 50th most expensive city in the world.^[7] Fortune magazine & CNN stated that Abu Dhabi is the richest city in the world.^[8]

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Bird’s Eye View of New York City

New York is the most populous city in the United States^[9] and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world.^[10][11][12] New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and entertainment. The home of the United Nations Headquarters,^[13] New York is an important center for international diplomacy^[14] and is widely deemed the cultural capital of the world.^{[15][16][17][18][19]} The city is also referred to as New York City or the City of New York^[20] to distinguish it from the state of New York, of which it is a part.^[21]

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The Ruins of the City of Vijayanagara - India

The City

The name translates as 'City of Victory', from vijaya (victory) and nagara (city). As the prosperous capital of the largest and most powerful kingdom of its time in all of India, Vijayanagara attracted people from all around the world. Pandit Nehru, in his book, "The Discovery of India" writes:

After Timur's sack of Delhi, North India remained weak and divided up. South India was better off, and the largest and most powerful of the southern kingdoms was Vijayanagar. This state and city attracted many of the Hindu refugees from the north. From contemporary accounts, it appears that the city was rich and very beautiful--The city is such that eye has not seen nor ear heard of any place resembling it upon earth", says Abdur-Razzak from Central Asia. There were arcades and magnificent galleries for the bazaars, and rising above them all was the palace of the king surrounded by "many rivulets and streams flowing through channels of cut stone, polished and even." The whole city was full of gardens, and because of them, as an Italian visitor in 1420, Nicolo Conti, writes, the circumference of the city was sixty miles. A later visitor was Paes, a Portuguese who came in 1522 after having visited the Italian cities of the Renaissance. The city of Vijayanagar, he says, is as "large as Rome and very beautiful to the sight"; it is full of charm and wonder with its innumerable lakes and waterways and fruit gardens. It is "the best-provided city in the world" and "everything abounds." The chambers of the palace were a mass of ivory, with roses and lotuses carved in ivory at the top--"it is so rich and beautiful that you would hardly find anywhere, another such."

The ruined city is a UNESCO World Heritage Site, known in that context as the Ruins of Hampi. In recent years there have been concerns regarding damage to the site at Hampi from heavy vehicular traffic and the construction of road bridges in the vicinity. Hampi is now listed as a "threatened" World Heritage Site.

It is widely believed that Vijaynagar was the largest city in India and the second largest city in the world at the end of 15th century with 500,000 inhabitants.^[1]

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Great Examples Of Urban Photography

A city is a relatively large and permanent settlement.^[1][2] Although there is no agreement on how a city is distinguished from a town within general English language meanings, many cities have a particular administrative, legal, or historical status based on local law.

For example, in the U.S. state of Massachusetts an article of incorporation approved by the local state legislature distinguishes a city government from a town. In the United Kingdom and parts of the Commonwealth of Nations, a city is traditionally a settlement with a royal charter.^[1] Historically, in Europe, a city was understood to be an urban settlement with a cathedral.

Cities generally have complex systems for sanitation, utilities, land usage, housing, and transportation. The concentration of development greatly facilitates interaction between people and businesses, benefiting both parties in the process. A big city or metropolis usually has associated suburbs and exurbs. Such cities are usually associated with metropolitan areas and urban areas, creating numerous businesscommuters traveling to urban centers for employment. Once a city expands far enough to reach another city, this region can be deemed aconurbation or megalopolis.

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Beautiful Attractions in Sweden

Sweden (ⁱ/ˈswiːdən/ swee-dən; Swedish: Sverige [ˈsværjɛ] ( listen)), officially the Kingdom of Sweden (Swedish:  Konungariket Sverige (help·info)), is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland, and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund.

At 450,295 square kilometres (173,860 sq mi), Sweden is the third largest country in the European Union by area, with a total population of about 9.4 million.^[5] Sweden has a low population density of 21 inhabitants per square kilometre (54 /sq mi) with the population mostly concentrated to the southern half of the country. About 85% of the population live in urban areas.^[12] Sweden's capital is Stockholm, which is also the largest city.

Sweden emerged as an independent and unified country during the Middle Ages. In the 17th century, the country expanded its territories to form the Swedish Empire. The empire grew to be one of the great powers of Europe in the 17th and early 18th century. Most of the conquered territories outside the Scandinavian Peninsula were lost during the 18th and 19th centuries. The eastern half of Sweden, present-day Finland, was lost to Russia in 1809. The last war in which Sweden was directly involved was in 1814, when Sweden by military means forced Norway into a personal union. Since then, Sweden has been at peace, adopting a non-aligned foreign policy in peacetime and neutrality in wartime.^[13]

Today, Sweden is a constitutional monarchy with a parliamentary democracy of government and a highly developed economy. In 2010, it ranked fourth in the world in The Economist's Democracy Index and ninth in the United Nations' Human Development Index. In 2010, theWorld Economic Forum ranked Sweden as the second most competitive country in the world, after Switzerland.^[14] Sweden has the lowestGini coefficient of all countries (0.23) which makes Sweden the most equal country on earth in terms of economic division. Sweden has been a member of the European Union since 1 January 1995 and is a member of the OECD.

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Amazing and Creative Town Hall Munich

Looking at this building it seems to have been built about 500 years ago, but it is not so at all. In fact it was built a bit more than 100 years ago. The construction began in 1867 and ended in 1909. The town hall is a building made in Neo-Gothic style, it has 400 rooms with total area more than 9 000 m. The height of the tower – 85m.

Capital City of Jamaica Kingston

Kingston is the capital city of Jamaica. Jamaica is an island located about 200 kilometers from Cuba. Jamaica is the largest English-speaking island in the Caribbean territory. Jamaica was a British colony but is totally independent country since 1962. Jamaica is of course an ideal tourist destination. The biggest resorts in Jamaica are Kingston, Montego Bay, Ocho Rios, Negril, Port Antonio and the South Coast. Jamaica is still classified as a developing country but this do not hinder on beauty and pleasure for millions of tourists visiting it every year.

The Garden City - AL AIN PARADISE

Al Ain Paradise, as it is known, has found its way in the Guinness Book of World Records — which has recognised it as the world's largest garden — for the second time.
Many visitors said it was a unique experience to see millions of flowers in different colours, types, and settings — in a city known for its desert dunes and an arid environment.

The garden now occupies an area of 21,000 square metres including the corridors and walkways of the internal length of 2,400 metres approximately more than double its earlier size.

Attractions:
It now has 2,965 flower baskets, instead of the previous 2,500 baskets, in addition to the flower pyramids. A theatre and a meeting area have also been added to the park.

A miniature Eiffel Tower, with a height of 12 metres and equipped with sophisticated lighting, has been erected to add more aesthetic value to the park. Al Ain Paradise also contains a 95 metre-long water stream.
It has been designed in the form of a natural rock dam where the water flows through in a circular course.


Enjoy The pics

Kingston - The Capital City of Jamaica

Kingston is the capital city of Jamaica. Jamaica is an island located about 200 kilometers from Cuba. Jamaica is the largest English-speaking island in the Caribbean territory. Jamaica was a British colony but is totally independent country since 1962. Jamaica is of course an ideal tourist destination. The biggest resorts in Jamaica are Kingston, Montego Bay, Ocho Rios, Negril, Port Antonio and the South Coast. Jamaica is still classified as a developing country but this do not hinder on beauty and pleasure for millions of tourists visiting it every year.

Golden Temple Harmandir Sahib - Images & Detail

The Harmandir Sahib also referred to as the Golden Temple, is a prominent Sikh gurdwara located in the city of Amritsar, Punjab (India). Construction of the gurdwara was begun by Guru Ram Das, the fourth Sikh Guru, and completed by his successor, Guru Arjan Dev. In 1604, Guru Arjan Dev completed the Adi Granth, the holy scripture of Sikhism, and installed it in the Gurdwara. In 1634, Guru Hargobind left Amritsar for the Shivalik Hills and for the remainder of the seventeenth century the city and gurdwara was in the hands of forces hostile to the Sikh Gurus.During the eighteenth century, the Harmandir Sahib was the site of frequent fighting between the Sikhs on one side and either Mughal or Afghan forces on the other side and the gurdwara occasionally suffered damage. In the early nineteenth century, Maharaja Ranjit Singh secured the Punjab region from outside attack and covered the upper floors of the gurdwara with gold, which gives it its distinctive appearance and English name of "Golden Temple"

Bruges - The City of Red Roofs

Bruges ( /ˈbruːʒ/ in English; Dutch: Brugge, [ˈbrʏʝə], French: Bruges, [ˈbʁyːʒ], German: Brügge, [ˈbrʏɡə]) is the capital and largest city of the province of West Flanders in the Flemish Region of Belgium. It is located in the northwest of the country.

The historic city centre is a prominent World Heritage Site of UNESCO. It is oval-shaped and about 430 hectares in size. The area of the whole city amounts to more than 13,840 hectares, including 1,075 hectares off the coast, at Zeebrugge (meaning "Brugge aan Zee"^[2] or "Bruges on Sea"^[3]). The city's total population is 117,073 (1 January 2008),^[4] of which around 20,000 live in the historic centre. Themetropolitan area, including the outer commuter zone, covers an area of 616 km² and has a total of 255,844 inhabitants as of 1 January 2008.^[5]

Along with a few other canal-based northern cities, such as Amsterdam, it is sometimes referred to as "The Venice of the North".

Bruges has a significant economic importance thanks to its port. At one time, it was the "chief commercial city" of the world.^[6]

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