Murree Hill Station in Pakistan

Murree is Pakistan's most popular hill station and a summer resort. Murree lies 50 kilometers northeast of Pakistani capital Islamabad at a comfortable altitude of 7500 feet (2286 meters) in the Himalayan foothills.

Murree in the Punjab and its adjoining hill stations, mostly situated in the Frontier Province, provide a cool retreat in summer to the people of the Punjab and the Frontier Province, particularly to those living in Rawalpindi and Islamabad. It is the most developed of these hill stations and has cool climate in summer and crisply cold in winter.

The region of Murree is called “the Queen of the Hills” for its scenic beauty and fascinating greenery. Nature in its full bounty is found scattered over every inch of the graceful hills and the lovely valleys. 

Beautiful verdant mountains overhung by pines and oaks, bubbling with gurgling springs, crisscrossed by streams, dotted with sprawling velvet-carpeted lawns and orchards with fruit laden trees, present the spectacle of a paradise on earth. The long summer days are ideal for lazy strolls or riding ponies along shady path on the Mall-between Kashmir and Pindi Points. 

In the winter the charming chalets, covered with snow set amidst fragrant pines is a jewel of a hill station for a romantic visit. Many fruits including cherries, raspberries and strawberries thrive locally.

Murree has long been Pakistan’s most important domestic tourist destinations. Murree is more like a modern town then a hill-station and by virtue of its easy accessibility and its enormous size, is an attractive resort both for holiday makers and seekers of solitude.

In this day of speed many people find themselves weary and stressed due to everyday monotonous routine of their lives and to get rid of this strain a visit to a hill station like Murree is best to keep them cool, cheerful and comfortable.

 This place offers anyone respite from world cares and struggles of life.  The stress and strain of seeking “success” is terrific.

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Kolkata, Cultural and Traditional City of India

Kolkata has long been known for its literary, artistic and revolutionary heritage. As the former capital of India, Kolkata was the birthplace of modern Indian literary and artistic thought. Kolkatans tend to have a special appreciation for art and literature; its tradition of welcoming new talent has made it a “city of furious creative energy”.

Kolkata has many buildings adorned with Gothic, Baroque, Roman, Oriental and Indo-Islamic (including Mughal) motifs. Several major buildings of the Colonial period are well maintained and have been declared “heritage structures”, while others are in various stages of decay. Established in 1814, the Indian Museum is the oldest museum in Asia and houses vast collection of Indian natural history and Indian art. The Victoria Memorial, one of the major tourist attractions in Kolkata, has a museum documenting the city’s history. The National Library of India is India’s leading public library. Academy of Fine Arts and other art galleries hold regular art exhibitions.
The city has a tradition of dramas in the form of jatra (a kind of folk-theatre), theatres and Group Theatres. Mainstream Hindi films are popular, as are films from the Bengali cinema industry, dubbed “Tollywood”. Tollygunj in Kolkata is the location of Bengali movie studios.

Kolkata, Cultural and Traditional City of India

Kolkata, Cultural and Traditional City of India

Kolkata, Cultural and Traditional City of India

Kolkata, Cultural and Traditional City of India

Kolkata, Cultural and Traditional City of India

Kolkata, Cultural and Traditional City of India

Kolkata, Cultural and Traditional City of India

Kolkata, Cultural and Traditional City of India

Kolkata, Cultural and Traditional City of India

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New York-World Trade Centre Info and Pictures

One World Trade Centre (Freedom Tower)

One World Trade Centre

World Trade Centre (Freedom Tower)

World Trade Centre (printed)

World Trade Centre

World Trade Centre Attack Sight

World Trade Centre

World Trade Centre Attack

World Trade Centre Attack

World Trade Centre Attack

World Trade Centre

World Trade Centre

Estimated cost (on Construction)

February 2007 estimates put the initial construction cost of 1 WTC at $3 billion, or $1,150 per square foot ($12,380 per square meter).Approximately $1 billion of insurance money recouped by Silverstein in connection with the September 11 attacks was used for the tower's construction.The State of New York provided $250 million toward construction costs, and the Port Authority agreed to finance a further $1 billion through the sale of bonds.(Wikipedia.org)

Height

The roof of the top floor of One World Trade Center will be 1,368 feet (417 m) tall, including a 33 ft 4 in (10.16 m) parapet. This height is the same as the North Tower of the original World Trade Center.The building's spire will bring One World Trade Center to a total height of 1,776 feet (541 m), a figure symbolic of the year of the United States Declaration of Independence. This will allow the tower to surpass the 1671-foot (509-meter) height of Taipei 101 to become the world's tallest all-office building and the tallest building in the Western Hemisphere, surpassing the Willis Tower (also known as the Sears Tower) in Chicago. However, its roof height will still be 83 feet (25 m) shorter than the Willis Tower. At the time of its completion, One World Trade Center will be the third-tallest skyscraper in the world, behind the Burj Khalifa and the Mecca Royal Hotel Clock Tower, and the 8th-tallest structure of any kind in the world. The Chicago Spire, with a planned height of 2,000 feet (610 m), was expected to exceed the height of One World Trade Center, but its construction was canceled in 2009 due to financial difficulties.(Wikipedia.org)

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New World Trade Center

The World Trade Center site is being transformed into a permanent memorial to the 9/11 attackes entitled Reflecting Absence, as well as a functional major office and visitor building called the Freedom Tower.The events of September 11, 2001, will never be forgotten by the people of New York City or America as a whole. The nature of the terrorist attacks on that day and the brave response of the heroes of New York City's Police and Fire Departments clearly showed, in one day, the very worst and very best aspects of humanity. If you visit New York City, take a break from the big, brassy tourist attractions that embody the city and visit the World Trade Center site, also commonly known as New York Ground Zero, at the corners of Liberty and Church streets in lower Manhattan.

Visitors can currently find the Tribute Center at 120 Liberty Street, where there is a gallery, information, tours, and a chance to reflect upon the tragedies of 9/11 and the World Trade Center bombing on February 26, 1993, in which six people were killed and more than 1,000 injured. The Tribute Center forms a temporary memorial at the World Trade Center, often referred to as Ground Zero, during the construction of the permanent 9/11 Memorial. Of the New York City tours you experience, this may be the most important. Although vastly different from any other experience you will have during your New York City vacation, a trip to the World Trade Center site is a powerful, moving piece of history that should not be missed. For a moving New York City day trip, visit Ellis Island and the Statue of Liberty also as you head downtown. Visitors may wish to light a candle at Saint Patricks Cathedral for quiet reflection upon returning to Midtown Manhattan.

Looking to the future, the permanent Ground Zero Memorial, Reflecting Absence, will include the footprints of the former twin towers as recessed pools, with the largest manmade waterfalls in the country and the victims' names inscribed around the edges of the pools. The absence of the buildings that stood there, and the people who occupied them on that day, is obvious and not to be forgotten no matter the future rebuilding of the complex. Plant life and quiet public spaces will occupy the street level as a calm oasis amid the hustle of the financial district, and sweetgum trees—whose leaves will turn to red and gold around September 11—will be planted around the memorial grounds. Below the street level at the World Trade Center Memorial site will be the areas for more privtate reflection. The plan was chosen as the winner of an international competition for architects and is the work of New York City's own Michael Arad and Peter Walker.

The main office building that will stand elsewhere on the sixteen-acre site is called Freedom Tower, which will stand 1,776 feet high, an extremely tall addition to the New York City skyline. Its placement on the World Trade center site will be adjacent to the memorial site. The tower originally was planned to be much less traditional in its architecture, but is now planned to balance existing Manhattan skyscraper aspects with a stunning new design legacy of its own.

During the construction of the World Trade Center Memorial site and the commercial structures that will occupy the World Trade Center site, visitors to New York Ground Zero may come and see the progress of the World Trade Center Memorial site, and reflect on the dual purpose of this place: to move on with confidence, but never forget.

Twin Towers 9/ 11

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Mark Twain National Forest

Mark Twain National Forest (MTNF) is a U.S. National Forest located in the southern half ofMissouri. MTNF was established on September 11, 1939. It is named for author Mark Twain, a Missouri native. The MTNF covers approximately 1.5 million acres (6,100 km²), 78,000 acres (320 km²) of which are Wilderness, and National Scenic River area. MTNF spans 29 counties and represents 11% of all forested land in Missouri. MTNF is divided into six distinct ranger districts: Ava-Cassville-Willow Springs, Eleven Point, Houston-Rolla-Cedar Creek, Poplar Bluff, Potosi-Fredericktown, and the Salem. The six ranger districts actually comprise nine overall unique tracts of forests. Its headquarters are in Rolla, Missouri.

Some unique features of the Mark Twain include Greer Spring, which is the largest spring on National Forest land, pumping an average of 214 million gallons of water per day.The public can also visit the Glade Top Trail National Scenic Byway, which offers views of over 30 miles (48 km) to the Boston Mountains in Arkansas.

History

In the 1870s, citizens of southern Missouri began an era of extensive logging of the state's native oak, hickory, and pine forests. Lumber mills were commonplace, but by the 1920s they had disappeared, along with much of the state's native forests. Thus, in 1939 President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed the MTNF into existence. In March 1933, he also created the Emergency Conservation Work Act, better known as theCivilian Conservation Corps (CCC). In the area that would later become Mark Twain National Forest, hundreds of young men at over fifty CCC sites worked at building roads and planting hundreds of acres of pine to preserve and enhance the natural resources of southern Missouri. Many of their contributions can still be visited and enjoyed today.

Wilderness areas

• Bell Mountain Wilderness
• Devils Backbone Wilderness
• Hercules-Glades Wilderness
• Irish Wilderness
• Paddy Creek Wilderness
• Piney Creek Wilderness
• Rockpile Mountain Wilderness

Counties

Although it is far from being the largest National Forest in acreage, Mark Twain National Forest is located in more counties than any other. As of September 30, 2007, its 1,490,862 acres (2,329.47 sq mi, or 6,033.3 km²) were spread over parts of 29 counties in southern and central Missouri.

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The Apeiron Hotel Dubai -Pics and Info

The Apeiron Hotel Dubai

Apeiron Hotel Dubai

The Apeiron Hotel Dubai - Statistics

Total Floors: 28 above ground
Total Suites: 438
Suite Sizes: 180m² - 750m²
Bbuilding Height: 185m
Gross Floor Area: 300,000m²
Site Footprint Area: 26,500m²
Passenger Lifts: 14
Service Lifts: 8
Distance off shore: 300m (building design as powerful within a landlocked site)
Wind Load Factor: 350km per hour
Construction Cost: $350m US Dollars est.
Structure: Steel, Reinforced Concrete
Hotel Rating: 5 Star Deluxe (7 Star Unofficially)

  

The Aperion - Floor Description & Breakdown

Level -3 Parking (optional road access via bridge or tunnel)
Level -2 Mechanical & Electrical Plant, Waste, Fire Pumps, Laundry, Parking
Level -1 Spa, Health Club, Sculpture Gallery, Restaurants, Bars, Club
(all double height spaces - views into arrival jetty, lagoon & pools)
Level 0 Ground Floor, Double Height Lobby & Luxury Boutiques
Level 1 Void from double height space below
Level 2 Luxury Boutiques & Bar
Level 3 - 7 16 Suites
Level 8 14 Suites, Double height Cinema & Bar
Level 9 14 Suites, Helipad + Sky Reception
Level 10 Mechanical & Electrical Plant, Restaurants & Art Gallery (under pools)
Level 11 16 Suites, Garden, Swimming Pools & Juice Bar
Level 12 - 19 24 Suites
Level 20 22 Suites
Level 21 20 Suites
Level 22 - 23 18 Suites
Level 24 12 Suites
Level 25 10 Suites
Level 26 8 Suites
Level 27 Restaurant & Bar
Level 28 Butterfly Jungle & Bar

  

The Apeiron Dubai - Key Facilities

Crescent Lagoon
An underwater sculpted landscape with colourful corals & sea water plant life cultivated to create a unique & surreal world. Fish and crustaceans will be introduced to complete the array of life and colours. At night, the lagoon will be lit with concealed underwater light sources to create a dramatic & different experience for the diver or snorkeller.

Level 00
Boat jetty in building atrium & access to private beach, gardens, fresh water pools & crescent lagoon. Building atrium is over 50m high.

Level 00 & -01 (under the beach)
A Health Club & Spa containing private saunas, steam rooms, treatment rooms, massage rooms, several fresh water pools at different temperatures located outside as well as inside with different lighting at night. Large windows from Level -01 Spa offer the opportunity to look into the lagoon and see the coral & fish; day and night.
Sculpture & art gallery lit by natural refracted light through pools above.

Level 09 
Helipad located 55m above the Arabian Gulf with bridge access across to the ninth floor of the hotel.

Level 11
Outdoor garden with views down the atrium through the building to the sea below & boat jetty as well as views out to sea. Dramatic surroundings with the remainder of the building lifting from the garden level, full size palm trees & fresh water pools. Pools in turn light the restaurant & art gallery below.

Level 28
Double height rooftop Butterfly Jungle level with a unique backdrop of the Arabian Gulf nearly 200m below. The temperature & humidity would be artificially controlled to make it a very relaxing & unique space. The introduction of colourful butterflies would add to the surreal surroundings.

Entertainment

The hotel will also contain a number of private clubs, private cinemas, luxury boutiques, conference rooms, restaurants with menus from all around the world. Restaurants & bars (alcoholic & non alcoholic) distributed throughout building from Level 28 to the underwater restaurant at Level -01.

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The World's Top Six and Seven Star Hotels

No,1# Emirates Palace, Abu Dhabi

 Emirates Palace Hotel - It's unclear who first called the Emirates Palace "the seven-starred jewel in Abu Dhabi's crown" but the description certainly seems to have caught on among fans of hotel purple prose. With reason: the hotel measures an entire kilometre from wing to wing, with 302 rooms, 60 suites, 128 kitchens, 102 lifts and a private floor reserved solely for leaders of the Gulf states. But that's just the big picture. The detail includes the marble from 13 countries with which the interior is clad, the 5kg of edible gold used to decorate hotel food every year and the hotel vending machine that - forget stingy chocolate bars and stale packets of crisps - dispenses pure bars of the precious metal to passing billionaire guests. 

No,2# Palazzo Versace, Australia

Palazzo Versace - Although officially five star, Australian Traveller magazine insisted the Palazzo Versace deserved another. This Gold Coast hotel has attracted stars not only to its letterhead but as guests: U2 and the Rolling Stones have stayed here, as have the slightly less celestial contestants on I'm a Celebrity, Get Me Out of Here, who retire to the sleek hotel after their stints in the jungle. Even with its 200 luxury rooms stuffed with Versace furniture and fittings and its own 90-berth marina, the Gold Coast property has sadly recently been eclipsed by a second Palazzo Versace, in Dubai. The owners of the latter have infuriated environmentalists by announcing plans to install a network of coolant-filled pipes beneath the beach to prevent the sand getting too hot. Why not just flog Versace flip-flops?

No,3# Al Husn, Oman

Shangri La hotels and resorts - The self-proclaimed six-starred Shangri-La Barr Al Jissah Resort and Spa has won numerous awards for its luxurious touch, but for guests who are seriously hard to please, the resort came up with Al Husn (meaning castle) - an even more deluxe enclave within the resort. Designed to resemble an Omani fort, this hotel-within-a-hotel is made up of 180 sea-facing guest rooms, each of which comes with a personal butler. The attentive service doesn't stop there - guests opting to spend the day by the pool are provided with a personal mini-cooling unit containing a selection of drinks, lip balm and a water spray. 

No,4# Amanjiwo, Indonesia

Aman resorts - The Indonesian resort of Amanjiwo owes confirmation of its six-star status to the luxury hotel guide Drake and Cavendish. Eight of the 36 suites here have private swimming pools; the Dalem Jiwo suite has an infinity pool and live-in butler. There's also a library, a top notch spa and an art gallery - along with boxes of watercolour paints in each room for budding Picassos. (With rates starting at around US$700 [£470], a complimentary pen probably wouldn't cut it.). The super-swish retreat sits in the shadow of four volcanoes, which may or may not be a selling point for potential British guests given recent seismic goings-on in Iceland. 

No,5#The Capella, Singapore

Capella, Singapore - The fact that the Capella is named after the sixth brightest star in the galaxy says a lot about how this hotel rates itself. The rooms are the largest in Singapore, a city in which space commands some of the highest premiums in the world. Forget twins or doubles here: guests choose from premier rooms, suites, villas or one of two Colonial Manors, which come with private swimming pools and outdoor showers. Guests pick from a team of personal assistants and have a chauffeur-driven Rolls-Royce at their disposal. There's a 1,000 sq metre spa whose treatments are meant to reflect the varying energies of the lunar cycle - the New Moon Spa Ritual treatment was voted Most Opulent Body Treatment by Harper's Bazaar. 

No,6# Burj Al Arab, Dubai

Jumeirah hotels and resorts - Guests at the Burj Al Arab, the Dubai outfit that started the whole five-stars-are-barely-a-twinkle trend, get to choose whether they want to arrive by Rolls Royce, BMW or helicopter. Expect to pay around £900 a night for even one of the most basic suites and the more expensive rooms feature rotating beds, private lifts and gold staircases. Sprucing up for the evening? Book a £200 caviar facial at the Assawan spa. Then dine at Al Mahara restaurant, where you can admire tropical fish through a floor-to-ceiling aquarium as you feast on their distant relatives. If money's no object, and your sense of taste is, shall we say, plastic, the Burj really is the place to stay.

No,7#The Seven Stars Galleria, Milan

JP-Briozzo - The Seven Stars Galleria claims to be the first officially certified seven star hotel, after receiving the accolade from the hotel inspection firm SGS. Prior to arrival, guests are sent a two page questionnaire about their preferences. We're not just talking about newspapers; guests can specify their desired room temperature, pillow requirements and favourite music - all before stepping into their fresco-bedecked rooms. But with rates ranging from around £500 a night to well north of £3000, you might expect such attention to detail. So, whether Money, Money, Money or the Threepenny Opera is your check-in preference, get out that rare-metal credit card now. 

No, 8# Pangu Seven Star Hotel, Beijing

Pangu - You needn't look far to discover how this Chinese hotel rates itself; sneak another peek at the name. Stretching the length of seven football fields, the Pangu Seven Star has been designed to resemble a dragon - its five towers linked by a 411-metre-long corridor and the fifth shaped like a dragon's head. The hotel's Sky Courtyard is its pièce de résistance - located on the 23rd floor and featuring a retractable roof and two-storey courtyards, it's among the closest places you'll come to fresh air in smoggy Beijing. In the rooms, guests can expect Bose sound systems, along with 600-thread-count Egyptian cotton sheets; the hotel is also the only place in China with permission to reproduce priceless artworks from the Forbidden City. 

No,9# The Kulm Hotel, St Moritz, Switzerland

Kulm Hotel - Lounging on the shores of Lake Moritz, the 173-room Kulm Hotel says its sixth star is merited by its Whatever You Want service, which meets guests' more unusual desires. Previous clients have requested everything from one-on-one golf lessons with the French Open winner Jakob Hlasek to private instruction from the world's top snowboarders. The service claims to include wishes that can't be bought with money - not that a little cash in hand won't help when some of the suites cost £1,000 a night. 

No,10#Altira Macau, Macau

Altira Macau - Described by its founders as a "six star experience", the Altira Macau is one of the few hotels to have been awarded five stars by Forbes magazine for both its rooms and its spa. Forbes described the hotel's 16th-floor infinity pool - with its floor-to-ceiling windows and underwater music - as one of the best in the world. Fans of Japanese food can dine at Kira, where authentic ingredients are flown in several times a week, and guests slumber under bed sheets made from the finest Egyptian cotton and sip complimentary bottled water imported from Norway. (Presumably the carbon footprint isn't included as part of the overall cost.). And the crowning touch? Guests enjoying the Gold treatment at the spa are dusted with the precious metal. 

No,11# The Park Hyatt, Seoul

Park Hyatt Seoul - Guests at the Park Hyatt Seoul, another recipient of Drake and Cavendish's sought-after sixth star, check in at the Sky Lobby on the 24th floor, where they can gaze through a floor-to-ceiling glass wall at guests frolicking in the 17 metre swimming pool. The hotel, the offspring of the oddly named Japanese design firm Super Potato, also proclaims a 570 sq metre spa and whole-room windows in the 185 deluxe rooms. Best of all, rates start at under £200. Bargain! 

No,12# The St Regis Shanghai, China

The St Regis Shanghai, China Interior

St Regis Shanghai - The St Regis Shanghai claims to provide its guests with a level of personal care unmatched by any other hotel. The level of detail at the minimum $485 (£322)-a-night hotel can be somewhat unnerving. Staff butlers pride themselves on remembering every detail about previous guests, from what kind of pillow they like, to their favourite fruit and which side of the bed they prefer to sleep on. There's even a women-only floor, spilling over with Bulgari toiletries and "feminine scented" flowers and presided over by a team of female butlers. Ironically, the St Regis website states that Tiger Woods recently enjoyed the services of the hotel's butlers, which conjures up images that perhaps weren't intended. 

No,13# Apeiron, Dubai

Sybarite - What next for plus-five-star hotels? The answer might lie in this creation - the Apeiron, in (yet again) Dubai. Although work on the self-proclaimed six-star hotel hasn't actually started yet, the British architecture firm Sybarite has already proclaimed it a top candidate for the hotel of the future. The plans include an artificial jungle, complete with butterflies, on the top two floors plus, less exceptionally these days, an underwater restaurant and an art gallery. Taking exclusivity to a new level, the hotel, with a rumoured $500 million budget, will only be accessible by helicopter and boat. 

Source ---MSN UK Travel

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