Spectacular New Floating Cycle Roundabout

For many Dutch people, their preferred mode of transportation is the bicycle. According to one estimate, every single day 14 million bicycle trips are made in Holland! Not surprisingly the country is well equipped with bicycle paths; bicycle traffic and safety is taken very seriously in the planning of infrastructure.

A magnificent example is the The Hovenring, a suspended bicycle path roundabout on the border between Eindhoven and Veldhoven. It is the first suspended bicycle roundabout in the world and was opened up for the public in June 2012 allowing bicycles to travel safely above the highly trafficked streets crossing below. Designed by ipv Delft, the bridge comprises a 70-metre high pylon, 24 steel cables and a circular bridge deck and is made out of circa 1.000 tons of steel.

The Hovenring is a suspended bicycle path roundabout on the border between Eindhoven and Veldhoven in the Netherlands. It is the first suspended bicycle roundabout in the world. 

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Carnival in Rio de Janeiro the final Stretch

The globe’s biggest Carnival bash opened Friday, when Rio de Janeiro’s mayor handed the key to the city to rotund King Momo, the mythical jester figure who reigns over Carnival. About 850,000 tourists are expected in Rio during the raucous, five-day free-for-all. Millions of people across the country will take to the streets and sambadromes to dance and party, effectively putting Brazil on a week-long hiatus. 

The Vila Isabel samba school was crowned champion of the 2013 Rio Carnival on Wednesday for its parade highlighting Brazil's agricultural might as "the world's breadbasket." In a feverishly awaited verdict, a 40-member jury gave the Rio school, considered a cradle of samba music in Brazil, the third title of its 65-year-old history. Vila Isabel received 299.7 points, edging the popular Beija-Flor with 299.4 and sparking scenes of jubilation at its northern Rio headquarters.

With its 3800 dancers and seven giant fantasy floats, Vila Isabel was the last of 12 elite samba schools to dazzle a capacity crowd early Tuesday at the 72,000-seat Sambodrome, the parade ground designed by the late star architect Oscar Niemeyer. With music composed by several popular sambistas, including Arlindo Cruz and 75-year-old composer Martinho da Vila, the school portrayed the simple customs of country people, their music, processions and festivals.

Last year, the Unidos da Tijuca school won the title, with its tribute to the late singer and composer Louis Gonzaga, the "king of Baiao," a popular music style from Brazil's northeast.The Sambodrome parades marked the climax of the pre-Lent bacchanalian Carnival festival, a national holiday celebrated throughout this huge and racially diverse country of 194 million people. Some six million people, including 900,000 tourists, are believed to have attended the five-day Rio extravaganza, which began Friday. Hailed as "the greatest show on Earth," the Rio Carnival also featured hundreds of street bashes marked by wild samba dancing and heavy beer consumption.

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Christmas Trees Around the World

Poles are walking around the Christmas tree in the center of Warsaw

 In the central squares of the largest cities in the world have started to establish Christmas trees. All the cities every year trying to bring what is in the design of new parts.In several cities unfortunately banned traditional eating place, because it offends the feelings of some of the "people."

Americans are skating around the Christmas tree in Pittsburgh, PA

Christmas tree in high-tech style on the Grand Place in Brussels, Belgium

Christmas Tree in Seoul, South Korea

Christmas Tree in Newport Beach, California

Tree in the Puerta del Sol in Madrid, Spain

Christmas Tree at the Staples Center arena in Los Angeles, California

40-year-old tree is full of lights in Baltimore mansion

 .The ceremonial lighting of the Christmas tree in Rio de Janeiro

Christmas tree on the background of the Capitol in Washington, DC

Workers decorate a Christmas tree in the center of Moscow

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