How very fortunate a coincidence that, in 1994, the management of Geneva’s Grand Théâtre were looking for an alternative venue to which to outsource their cultural performances set for the 1997/1998 season: Modernisation of their theatre was imminent and a worthy substitute location desperately needed. A magnificent structure, listed since the late 1980s and dramatically squatting above the River Rhône, seemed the ideal candidate: The Bâtiment des Forces Motrices, originally built by the engineer and politician Théodore Turrettini for industrial purposes in the outgoing 19th century, served as Geneva’s first hydro-electric power plant. It had provided the city with water and electricity until its decommission in the 1960s and had been lying dormant since.
Topic: Europe
Austria: The science of coffee-brewing in Vienna
Coffee is not just an invigorating brew but rather a scientific field of expertise worth being explored. Barista Schools popping up the world over bear witness to the cognition that a cup of coffee is not something to be prepared in one’s stride. It is a challenge which has to be given care and devotion at least as deep as is granted to the meticulously performed Asian Tea Ceremony.
Here in Vienna, each type of coffee is honoured with its individual cryptical name. The least one can do for a treasure accidentally left by the Ottomans after their siege of Vienna in 1683. Apart from war and devastation, they had brought along with them a culinary novelty: Viennese citizens discovered a number of bags filled with precious coffee beans in an abandoned Turkish camp after the battle was over. Jerzy Franciszek Kulczycki, a Polish-Lithuanian nobleman, had taken hold of the bags and opened Vienna’s first coffeehouse in the same year. www.wien.info/en/shopping-wining-dining/coffeehouses/in-the-old-city
3D-Technology: Print yourself another you
There’s screeching violins and scary guns, minute bikinis and most interesting food. Human stem cells, bionic ears, fetuses or King Richard III.’s reconstructed face. With appliances becoming more affordable, 3D printing has not only enriched the options for the science and technology sectors considerably. A wide array of objects can now be designed and printed up to a certain scale with the range stretching from things practical to weird and from commercial products to manufacturing parts. Bioprinting of portions of the human body for medical purposes has revolutionised the field. And a wealth of exciting developments is still in the pipeline. Experts predict that privately owned 3D printers will be a frequent commodity in the not too distant future and 3-dimensional DIY activities a realistic option for virtually everyone.
Filming Location Goerlitz: George Clooney was here …
Imagine, you were a citizen of a usually quaint pretty small town situated close to the Polish border and, all of a sudden, George Clooney crossed your path! Or one of the ‘Inglorious Basterds’. Or perhaps you would happen to bump into Bill Murray right in front of ‘The Grand Budapest Hotel’. Theoretically, you could. Practically, although the mentioned protagonists were physically present, you would probably have had to be satisfied with a clandestine glimpse of the desired human objects (one of which was voted „sexiest man alive“ not too long ago) from afar. With film sets meticulously cordoned off and actors well protected against curious intruders at all times, one does not just walk into stars of such calibre at random! Not even in the narrow alleys of remote Goerlitz. Unless, of course, one becomes an extra in one of the productions – allowed to play an (in?)significant role within the twinkling orbit of much-admired international celebrities.
Handy for events: The portable hotel
Tell someone about on-site accommodation along with the description „box style“, and you’ll usually not harvest much enthusiasm. Unlike the familiar containers utilised as office space and living quarters on regular construction sites around the globe, this innovative temporary housing scheme stands for a comfy hotel arrangement rather than the interim solution it actually is.