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четвъртък, 5 юли 2012 г.

Festivals in Europe: July Morning - Bulgaria

July Morning is one of those local and interesting celebrations, which give Europe its variety, culture and excitement. It is a festival for freedom, summer and music and it is loved by free minded people from all ages.

The July Morning event is a Bulgarian annual festival celebrated in the early morning of 1st of July each year and it is basically the waiting of the sunrise over the sea waters of the Black Sea.

The start of the festival was given by a group of friends from the city of Varna in by then communist Bulgaria. As they greeted the rising July sun, they decided that this should become an annual tradition and since then the number of people following their wonderful idea is rising each year.

Nowadays there are many events in all Bulgarian Black Sea cost cities and towns and people gather to spend a beautiful night together and to say hello to the magical summer sun, rising over the sea waters. One of those festivals is for example the "Sozopol July Morning Festival", located near the beautiful town of Sozopol.

The name of the even was strongly influenced by the song "July Morning" by the legendary rock band Uriah Heep and these days two of the bands members ( Ken Hensley and John Lawton ) come each year to Bulgaria to sing their wonderful song along with hundreds of people at the moment the first July sun rays greet the smiling faces of the participants.

петък, 22 юни 2012 г.

Festivals in Europe: Montreux Jazz Festival, Montreux, Switzerland, 29 June - 14 July 2012

Montreux Jazz Festival is another musical event in Europe, which presents to the visitors not only the best of music, but the magnificent beauty of the place itself.

Situated in the Alps, on the Geneva Lake, Montreux is a wonderful city, which will present to you the best of inland Europe has to offer.

The festival will be host to some of the Jazz legends and the most promising new-comers of our time and will be a musical spectacle you will really enjoy.

Some of the guests include:

NEW ORLEANS JAZZ TRAIN
THE STUDIO MODERNITY
CREATION LEMANIQUE
AUDIOTHEQUE
GOLDENPASS JAZZ TRAIN
ERYKAH BADU
VAN MORRISON
NENEH CHERRY & THE THING
LA FEMME
BOB DYLAN
JULIETTE GRÉCO
MICHAEL WOLLNY
ANITA BAKER
TONY BENNETT

and a whole lot more !

There will be many, MANY performances and this would really be one of the main jazz events of the year.

The events will take place on numerous stages throughout Montreux, which will give the visitors a great variety not only of music, but also of the feeling of the city.

Full program and detailed information about the events can be found on the official Montreux Jazz Festival web-site:

http://www.montreuxjazzfestival.com

Festivals in Europe: Cap Roig Festival, Calella de Palafrugell, Spain, 14 July - 18 August 2012

The Cap Roig Festival is one of the exclusive musical events in Europe, in which you can enjoy a list of unbelievably good musical performances and also have a splendid vacation in one of Europe`s most beautiful places.

Calella de Palafrugell is proud to have one of the greatest botanical gardens in Europe - Cap Roig, and the surrounding nature is as beautiful as it gets due to the presence of plants from each of the continents, flourishing in Spain`s splendid climate.

The line-up of the festival includes performances by:
Bob Dylan ( 14 July 2012 )
George Benson ( 18 July 2012 )
Tonny Bennet ( 20 July 2012 )
Manolo Garcia ( 21 July 2012 )
Ben Harper ( 31 July 2012 )
Paul Anka ( 02 August 2012 )
James Morrison ( 05 August 2012 )
Chambao ( 15 August 2012 )
Alejandro Sanz ( 18 August 2012 )

and many talented artists, who will make the festival a classical and memorable event.

Additional information and ticket availability can be found on the official Cap Roig Festival web-site:

http://www.caproigfestival.com

Festivals in Europe: Festival Internacional de Benicassim, Spain, 12 - 15 July 2012

This years Festival Internacional de Benicassim will again present a list of great performers, who will make sure that the tens of thousands of festival guests will have a special musical experience.

The seaside town of Benicassim is a splendid destination to enjoy some great moments at the beach as well, so your visit of the festival can really be amazing, of course mostly focusing on the music.

The line-up includes names such as:

Bob Dylan
Florence + The Machine
The Stone Roses
Noel Gallagher`s High Flying Birds
New Order
David Guetta
De la Soul

and many others ...

Festival Internacional de Benicassim is a great opportunity to enjoy Spain at it`s best and to know that you will come back next year as well.

Detailed information about the festival, ticket prices, transport and accommodation options can be found on the official web-site of the event:

http://fiberfib.com/

Enjoy it !

Concerts in Europe: Bob Dylan Europe Tour 2012

Summer is getting really heated and besides the expected 2 weeks beach vacations is also giving us musical events with significant importance. Such and event is also the Bob Dylan 2012 Tour, which will have many dates in Europe and will give the audience the opportunity to witness a legend creating his magic on stage.

The dates are as follows:

30.06.2012    - The Hop Farm,, Paddock Wood, UK
02.07.2012    - Zitadelle Spandau, Berlin, Germany
03.07.2012    - Freilichtbühne Grosser Garten, Dresden, Germany
04.07.2012    - Bonn Veranstaltungen, Bonn, Germany
06.07.2012    - Schlosshof, Bad Mergentheim, Germany
07.07.2012    - Salzburgarena, Salzburg, Austria
08.07.2012    - Auditorium Stravinski, Montreux, Switzerland
11.07.2012    - Guggenheim Museum Bilbao, Bilbao, Spain
12.07.2012    - Recinto de Conciertos, Benicassim, Spain
13.07.2012    - Benicassim, Castellon de la Plana, Spain
14.07.2012    - Jardín Botánico del Cap Roig, Calella, Spain
15.04.2012    - Arena of Nîmes, Nimes, France
16.07.2012    - Piazza Colbert, Bologna, Italy
18.07.2012    - Nuits de Fourvière, Lyon, France
19.08.2012    - Site De Kerampuilh, Carhaix, France
20.07.2012    - Arenes De Bayonne, Bayonne, France
22.07.2012    - la Prairie de Kerampuilh, Carhaix-Plouguer, France

Some of the concerts will be part of international festivals, presenting other amazing artists as well, so just pick the date that suits you best and have a wonderful musical experience.

Tickets and additional information on the tour can be found on the official Bob Dylan web-site:

http://www.bobdylan.com/

вторник, 19 юни 2012 г.

Sozopol, Bulgaria - A Traditional And Beautiful Summer Holiday Destination

Sozopol is an amazing small town situated in Eastern Bulgaria, about 30 km from the city of Burgas. It has ancient cultural and religious history, traditional Bulgarian architectural style and amazing nature with both beautiful golden beaches with crystal clear water and nice forests around the bay.

Location and history

Sozopol is dates back from the 7th century BC and was established by the Greek colonists from the ancient town of Miletus. It has been a flourishing and rich town for centuries mainly due to its perfect location and the trading activities of its citizens with many of the other Greek colonies.

The location of Sozopol makes it presently a nice and well developed holiday traveling destination, which is very close to an international airport. This allows tourists from many countries to visit it each year and gives the town a string economical and cultural development.

Currently there have been significant archeological findings such as parts of bones of the body of St John The Baptist. This, along with the fact that Sozopol has been an important cultural and religious place in the past, gives the town a great opportunity to establish itself as a preferred destination for cultural and religious tourism.

Accommodation

Sozopol has to offer many types of accommodation options for all types of travelers - singles, young couples or families.

The Old Town is preferred by families as it is more quiet that the New Town, it is very close to a nice beach it has a beautiful main walking street with many restaurants on the main and side streets, which give you a spectacular view to both sides of the peninsula. You can at the very same time enjoy the view to the harbor and St John island on one side and the beach and the New Town at the other side. The Old Town can offer many small hotels and apartments, which are mostly build in traditional Bulgarian style and usually have a breath-taking view towards to sea and the beautiful surroundings.

The New Town is a modern holiday town with a beautiful beach, numerous restaurants and bars and plenty of shopping opportunities. There are many beautiful hotels right next to the beach, which gives you a very easy access to everything you need in a several minutes walk. Most seaside rooms have a very beautiful view to the Old Town and you besides visiting the many food and drink places around, you can really enjoy a nice and romantic dinner on the balcony.

Things to do and see in Sozopol

There are several things you should do such as:
- take a walk on both sides of the Old Town with the harbor and St John island on one side and the ancient fortress wall on the other side
- taste traditional Bulgarian cuisine and fresh sea fish at some of the small restaurants with great sea view
- enjoy the beaches of Sozopol, which have beautiful golden sand and crystal clear water, protected from big waves by the perfect location of the lagune
- visit some of the traditional churches in the Sozopol Old Town. They might not be as spectacular on the outside as the Italian cathedrals, but you will feel their unique atmosphere and will

Sozopol is a wonderful and traditional Bulgarian town and it will give you memories, which will last.

четвъртък, 14 юни 2012 г.

Festivals in Europe: San Fermin Festival - The Running with the Bulls, 6-th July - 14-th July

The San Fermin Festival is held each year in the city of Pamplona - Navarre, Spain between the 6-th and the 14-th July as a celebration to the Saint Fermin, one of the two patrons of the town.

The festival is related to street processions with the image of the saint, which leaves the Church of San Lorenzo for only a couple of hours on the 7-th of July. The participants in the procession are dressed in white and this is a moment of great tradition for the locals, who await this moment all year long. The procession starts at 10.30 am, it includes people from different social role and has a strict route through the city.

The festival is world famous for one very spectacular reason - The running of the bulls. This is a spectacle of speed and suspense, which is viewed by millions of visitors since its beginning. Starting as a traditional way to lead the bulls to the arena, The running of the bulls is now an event, which attracts adrenaline fans from all over the world. There is a special 850 meters course for the run and along it there is a great number of safety barriers.

Prior to the start, the runners sing three times a song for protection by San Fermin. The runs start each day at 8.00 am between the 6-th and the 14-th July and the start is given by four rockets, signaling the runners about the opening of the bull barriers. The run usually takes about 4 minutes, remembered for life by the participants. Between 2000 and 3000 people participate in the runs in the different days. Although serious injuries are a small percent of the couple of hundred injured participants each year, this tradition has caused the loss of life for14 people since it is documented.

Each day at 6.30 pm there are bullfights in the Bullring. What makes the bullfights special for Pamplona are the Peñas - the local musicians, who bring a great entertainment to the atmosphere.

Just as at the end of each day, the San Fermin Festival ends officially at 11.00 pm on the 14-th July with a fireworks display, which is a fantastic way to end each day of the calender of the festival and to finish up with the festive activities.

Detailed information about the city of Pamplona and the events of the San Fermin Festival can be found on the official Pamplona web-site:

San Fermin Festival - Pamplona - Navarre, Spain