Hauntingly beautiful deserted places

House of the Bulgarian Communist Party, Bulgaria

The House-Monument of the Bulgarian Communist Party was no doubt a wonder in its day with its extreme location on Mount Buzludzha and strange giant saucer form. It was abandoned after Bulgaria’s socialist republic came to an end in 1990.

Sometime after 1991, the words ‘FORGET YOUR PAST’ were scrawled in red paint above the main entrance. The iconic graffiti shows the feelings of many young Bulgarians who would rather forget the mistakes made by another generation.

Kolmanskop, Namibia

The town declined after World War I when the diamond-field slowly exhausted and was ultimately abandoned in 1954. This ghost town is now popular for the sights of the desert sands’ reclaiming this once-thriving setting.

The Maunsell Forts, England

These fortified towers were built in the Thames and Mersey estuaries during the Second World War to help defend the UK. In the 1960s and 70s, the forts were famously taken over as pirate radio stations. Now all of them are deserted.

Sarajevo Winter Olympics bobsleigh track, Bosnia and Herzegovina

When Sarajevo was awarded the 1984 Winter Olympics in 1977, a bobsleigh and luge track was built. After that it was used for World Cup competitionsuntil the start of the Yugoslav wars in 1991. Today, the tracks still remain mostly intact covered in war scars and graffiti.

North Brother Island, NYC, USA

It is a small island in the East River situated between the Bronx and Riker’s Island. Once the site of a hospital, it is now uninhabited and designated as a bird sanctuary.

Craco, Italy

During the mid-twentieth century, recurring earthquakes began to ruin the town. Between 1959 and 1972, parts of the village were severely damaged and rendered uninhabitable by a series of landslides.  For safety, the entire population of 1,800 residents moved, leaving the town uninhabited.

Five Rainbow Lands

Last year I was on a trip to Italy and I had the privilege to see some of it’s most beautiful sights like Rome, Florence, Verona, Maranello and Venice.  But Italy is a country where every little village has it’s charm and I would love to have the pleasure of enjoying more of it. So if I get the chance to go again, this is on the top of my list:

 Cinque Terre – The Five Lands of Color

Cinque Terre, which means Five Lands, cincludes five small coastal villages located in the Italian region of Liguria. Riomaggiore, Manarola, Corniglia,Vernazza and Monterosso are listed on the UNESCO World Heritage List.

Riomaggiore

This is the most southern of the 5 cities. It has the tipical colorful houses and an ancient stone castello.  During the day you can see the sunlight reflected in the water and hear bell towers chiming. At night the sight becomes a little surreal as small boats go night fishing for anchovies and other fish using lights to attract the fish.

Manarola

This small town is filled with boats of all kinds that line the main street. It has the best gelateria of all the towns: 5 Terre Gelateria e Creperia. Yummy! It also has a charming little swimming area, plenty of caves and coastline to explore with beautiful underwater rocks.

Corniglia

 Corniglia is smaller and quieter, but it looks just as fantastic as the other towns. Unlike the other cities of the Cinque Terre, Corniglia is not directly adjacent to the sea. It is situated on the top of a 100 metres high hill, surrounded by vineyards, terraces and a steep slope that ends at the sea. The town is a little different from the other villages: the houses are lower set, and only the more recently built are higher.

Vernazza

This is the next town to the north. It has a spectacular trail that goes along the sea and offers a great backwards views of both Corniglia and Manarola. They say Vernazza is bright and cheerful. It presents its visitors with a cool night scene, clock towers,the usual boats and a nice beach.

Monterosso

It is actually comprised of two cities, which are connected by a short road tunnel. The ‘old’ town is Monterosso and the new town, Fegila, that has many modern apartments, hotels, a large sandy beach with lots of colourful umbrellas, and cosy looking beach-side restaurants and cafes. The old town is identical to the other Cinque Terre towns, though it is  bigger, not that steep and has a number of boutiques and other shops.

Back in time

Firenze

Ljubljana

Veliko Tarnovo

Rome, Piazza Navona

Firenze

Veliko Tarnovo

Do You Remember
When We Fell In Love
We Were Young
And Innocent Then
Do You Remember
How It All Began
It Just Seemed Like Heaven
So Why Did It End?

Do You Remember
Back In The Fall
We’d Be Together
All Day Long
Do You Remember
Us Holding Hands
In Each Other’s Eyes
We’d Stare
Tell Me

Do You Remember The Time
When We Fell In Love

Only Italy. Only Robert Downey Jr. I review Only you

I’m a little sick and staying at home so I needed a “comfort” movie. I was browsing Imdb for a nice comedy or a rom-com and I found this. I love everything about Italy, RDJ is one of my favorite actors and Marisa Tomei does great supporting roles so the choice was easy.

The plot was a little far-fetched. When she’s 11, Faith (Marisa Tomei) finds the name of her soul mate from the Ouija board: Damon Bradley. Later, a fortune teller sees the same name in the Crystal Ball and Faith is convinced. 14 years later, she is engaged and about to marry a nice but dull doctor. Until she gets a call from one of his classmates who is on his way to Venice, Italy. “Surprisingly” his name is Damon Bradley. So Faith and her sister-in-law Kate decide to go to Italy hoping to find Damon.