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Top 10 A-List Celebrity Romantic Getaways via [romowtravelblog]
Many celebrities
like to keep their love life under wraps, so it’s not surprising that
countless celebrity couples have often been spotted on romantic
getaways.
For many celebrity couples, these romantic retreats are one of their
few opportunities to spend quality time together, away from their
hectic work schedules, A-list events and hordes of fans. So when they
do get the opportunity to escape on a romantic getaway, they ensure
that the destination they choose fits the bill perfectly – just as
these celebrity couple getaways do:
1. Maldives
The picture-perfect
Maldives is a hot spot for A-list celebrity couples who want to cosy up
in the private beach-side huts on the paradise isles in the Indian
Ocean.
Celebrity sightings: Beyonce and Jay-Z,
Naomi Campbell and Vladislav Doronin, Catherine Zeta Jones
and Michael Douglas, Kate Moss, Sadie Frost, Eva Longoria, Jude Law, Penelope Cruz.
2. Dubai
“The star of the Middle East”
boasts the world’s only seven-star hotel – the Burj Al Arab. With
suites priced from US$2,000 up to US$28,000 per night, it’s no wonder
celebrities often feature on the hotel’s guest list.
Celebrity sightings: Claudia Schiffer, Michael Schumacher, David and
Victoria Beckham, Serena and Venus Williams.
3. Italy
The food, the wine, the
culture, the art, and, of course, the romance, make Italy a top
celebrity couple getaway destination. As an extra treat for their
beloved, celebrity couples can shop to their heart’s content at Italy’s
many world-renowned fashion houses.
Celebrity sightings: George Clooney,
Matt Damon, Ben Affleck, Jennifer Aniston, Sylvester Stallone.
4. Barbados
As well as being renowned
for being the birthplace of singer Rihanna, this Caribbean island is
also home to some of the world’s most spectacular white sand beaches
with their glittering turquoise waters, as well as fine dining and
swanky hotels.
Celebrity sightings: Elton John, Prince Andrew, Sting, David and
Victoria Beckham, Will Smith, Tiger Woods.
5. Bahamas
Only 40 out of more than
700 of the islands of the Bahamas are inhabited. It’s no wonder then
that it’s a popular destination for celebrity couples seeking privacy.
When celebrities have had enough of soaking up the sun amid gorgeous
beaches, they can indulge in the islands’ glitzy nightlife.
Celebrity sightings: Jennifer Hudson, Carrie Underwood, Lily Allen.
6. Miami
Fun-loving celebrity couples
love heading to Miami for some fun under the sun. Stars can go
club-hopping all night long at South Beach, grooving to Latin beats.
Celebrity sightings: Shakira, Janet Jackson, Gwen Stefani, Jennifer
Lopez, Justin Timberlake, Cameron Diaz, Beyonce, Kate Moss.
7. French Riviera
One of the jewels of
the Mediterranean, the French Riviera, or Côte d’Azur in French,
provides for one of the most romantic backdrops in the world. It is
dotted with many luxury hotels as well as private yachts.
Celebrity sightings: Joan Collins, Lily Allen, Elton John, Elizabeth
Hurley, Catherine Zeta Jones and Michael Douglas, Brad Pitt and
Angelina Jolie.
8. Mexico
It may not be associated
with glitz and glamour, but Mexico still attracts many celebrity
couples thanks to its warm sun and palm-tree lined beaches. Its
nightlife is another selling point, and celebrities can often be found
downing tequila shots in one of Mexico’s many bars and clubs.
Celebrity sightings: Britney Spears,
Heidi Klum, Sienna Miller, Jennifer Aniston and John Mayer.
9. Rio de Janeiro
The second largest city of
Brazil is the perfect place for celebrity couples to get away from it
all and let their head down. Whether celebrities are off to the
flamboyant Carnaval, to an action-packed football match, or to the
beach to dance some samba on the sand, Rio always guarantees them a
good time.
Celebrity sightings: Naomi Campbell, Calvin Klein, Mick Jagger, Gisele
Bündchen.
10. Paris
No romantic getaway list
would be complete without the world’s capital of romance – Paris. When
celebrity couples are in the mood for romance, they head to the City of
Lights – a place just as glamorous, fashionable, and famous as they
are.
Celebrity sightings: Reese Witherspoon and Jake Gyllenhaal, Katy
Perry, Dita Von Teese, Emma Watson.
My FAVE 3 Ultra-Modern Cities of the World via [RatesToGo]
OPULUXE Lounge Grooves™ PlayList
Three Most Futuristic Cities
posted by: E Choon
There are only two ways of looking at the future; bright and spectacular or gloomy and horrible. Most of us would prefer a spectacular image, straight out of a sci-fi movie. Thankfully, even today some cities are working hard towards that great future and definitely deserve our commendations. The top three cities that make the cut as the most futuristic cities of today are Tokyo, Hong Kong and Dubai.
Tokyo
Ultra modern, with busy streets 24/7 and skyscrapers that puncture the sky, Tokyo is one of the most futuristic cities on earth. They make extensive use of technological advances, from internet, to electric toilets. They boast the fastest railway system in the world; their Bullet train can move up to 300 mph. Even anime has used this city to depict the future. Check out some of the Tokyo hotel deals for a wild time in Japan’s most modern city.
Hong Kong
With skyscrapers that defy description, and neon lights flashing everywhere, Hong Kong is the next on our futuristic destinations list. The city makes use of a tram network with a smart card system to make travel from points in the city faster and more efficient, whether public or private. The beauty of the city and the unique skyline are hard to match, even the roads network looks out of this world. With one of the worlds best airports, built 16 miles out to sea and buildings which will definitely make you wonder which century you are in, Hong Kong is an amazing place to be.
Dubai
Lastly, Dubai is the one that definitely looks nothing like any city anyone has seen before. The city doesn?t do anything on a small scale. They are currently in the process of building the first underwater hotel, and the houses at their marina are not only modern, but the design used to build looks like something straight out of the Waterworld. Add the unusually shaped buildings and busy city life, and you could definitely be looking at our future.
They have one of the world’s first ever built 7 star hotels called Burj Al Arab Hotel.
Travel Photo Tour: The World’s Most Beautiful Aquariums. via [Quality Junk]
OPULUXE Lounge Grooves™ PlayList
7 Most Amazing and Breathtaking Aquariums Around The World
This is really amazing. Most beautiful and breathtaking aquariums around the world. never seen something like this. hope you will agree with me.
1. Dubai aquarium in the Dubai Mall
Stingrays swim in the Dubai aquarium in the Dubai Mall, which covers the area of 50 soccer pitches. The Dubai Aquarium – vast, entertaining, an engineering marvel, three storeys tall and featuring glass ‘walk-through’ tunnels that contain exotic marine life.
2. Georgia Aquarium, Atlanta
World’s Largest Aquarium, Georgia Aquarium,Atlanta, a wonderful home for more than 100,000 animals of 500 different species (notable specimens: whale sharks, beluga whales, manta ray) and with a capacity of 8.1 million US gallons (31,000 m³) of marine fresh water
3. Churaumi Aquarium
World’s Second Largest Aquarium , Churaumi Aquarium,part of the Ocean Expo Commemorative National Government Park located in Motobu, Okinawa, Japan; capacity: 7,500-cubic meters (1,981,290 gallons) of water; one of the few places where visitors can see a great variety of sea creatures including sharks and manta rays.
4. The Aquarium of Western Australia (AQWA)
AQWA, an unbelievable journey to the underwater world of Western Australia, “from the icy waters of the southern ocean to the tropical wonderland of coral reefs in the Far North”The Aquarium of Western Australia (AQWA) is a privately owned aquarium in Hillarys, Western Australia. It opened as Underwater World, Perth on April 13, 1988 and was acquired by the current owners, Coral World International and Morris Kahn, in 1991. It changed to its current name on January 1, 2001. The facility holds approximately 400 species of marine life.
Largest Aquarium in Africa – UShaka Marine World, located on the strip of land between the beachfront and the harbor in Durban, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa; a beautiful amusement park and at the same time the worlds fifth largest aquarium with 32 water tanks. The sea creatures found in the aquarium range from small sea horses all the way through to sharks and dolphins. The Aquarium is built to look like an old wreck.
6. AquaDom, Radisson Hotel Aquarium
World’s Largest Cylindrical Aquarium , AquaDom, Radisson Hotel Aquarium, Berlin; 25 meters high aquarium, with a capacity of 260,000 gallons of water and over 2,500 fish (56 species); visitors can travel through the aquarium using an encased elevator and get to the top where there is a restaurant and an open view of the city; hotel rooms can also experience the underwater view.
7. The 32 million dollar Virtual Aquarium
World’s Largest Virtual Fish Tank, 30 by 250 meters LED screen or 32 million dollar Virtual Aquarium mounted at about 80 feet in the air between two shopping malls in Beijing.
The World’s Coolest Kiddie Playgrounds via [Mental_Floss]
10 Unusual Playgrounds From Around the World by
Playgrounds have come a long way since the days of hot, steel slides and open-backed infant swings. Take a look at some of the many unusually cool designs popping up around the world.
1. Nishi-Rokugo – Tokyo, Japan
In Japanese, Nishi-Rokugo means Tire Park. The Kawasaki plants are located not far away, so it’s possible they donated the 3,000 tires that make up the dinosaurs, monsters, bridges, slides, swings, and all the loose ones there for kids to stack and hop on. But this sand-bottom park is hardly just for kids. Parents can haul tires up specially designed tire steps and tube down wide concrete slides. I can imagine it’s the type of place you can spend hours at before you, er, tire, of it.
2. The Fruit and Scent Playground –Liljeholmen, Sweden
A banana slide, strawberry spinners, a pair of cherry swings, an orange see-saw and a watermelon jungle gym are all part of this unusual, small park in the south of Stockholm. It’s a great theme because it also teaches kids the importance of fruit over junk food. Reports coming out of the country indicate that the outdoors-loving Swede is on the way out. According to a study by Karolinska university hospital, obesity among seven year olds in Stockholm has increased from 8.5% to 21% over the last fifteen years. What could be better than exercising in fruit as an antidote?
3. Clemyjontri Park – Fairfax County, Virginia
Not just the name is unusual at Clemyjontri Park in Fairfax County, Virginia. This place is one of the few playgrounds in the world where children with disabilities can play side-by-side those without. The entire park is equipped with ramps for wheelchairs and the ground surfaces are specially designed with a non-slip material. The park is named for Adele Lebowitz’s (a major donor) four children: Carolyn (CL), Emily (EMY), John (Jon), and Petrina (Tri). Mrs. Lebowitz and her husband were also sponsors of a local children’s television show, The Pick Temple Show, in the 1950s. The star of that show, a clown named Bozo, was played by Willard Scott. Bozo, as you might know, would later morph into Ronald McDonald.
4. Pruessen Park – Berlin, Germany
This next playground is not for kids at all. In fact, anyone under 16 is not allowed inside Berlin’s Pruessen Park, nicknamed the “Playground for Grown-Ups.” The equipment is specifically designed for people over five feet tall and caters to Germany’s fastest growing age demographic: seniors. The idea, obviously, is to encourage them to get out and exercise more.
5. Zabeel Technology Park – Dubai
Perhaps the first playground in the world with a technology theme, Dubai’s Zabeel Technology Park has two zones featuring futuristic technology and alternative energy exhibits, a series of high tech interactive displays, and a maze modeled on the solar system.
6. Takino Hillside Park – Sapporo-shi, Hokkaido, Japan
The Children’s Playground in the Takino Hillside Park in Japan borrows ideas and images from nature. Varied lighting and sound conditions create a unique sensory experience for kids, unlike anything else on this list. Check out the cool net play tool in the rainbow nest dome. You can see how a lot of the park is built into, and under the hill.
7. St. Kilda Adventure Playground – Adelaide, Australia
St Kilda Adventure Playground is one of Australia’s best known parks and covers 4 hectares along the beautiful South Australian seafront. The park was opened in 1982 and recent upgrades include a wooden castle, a small maze, and a submarine, nicknamed “The Yellow Submarine.” But the park’s biggest attraction is the beached pirate shipwreck, which is especially popular with dolphins and other sea wildlife.
8. Teardrop Park – New York City, NY
Located between residential buildings in Battery Park City, Teardrop Park is unlike anything else in NYC. Built for a whopping $17 million, the park features prominent rock outcroppings, geologic formations, a secret path, a bluestone ice wall, a humongous, almost dangerous looking slide, sandboxes, water play areas, a reading space with rock seats, and places to rock hop. Best of all, because it’s not so easy to find, Teardrop Park is a real insiders secret. (Shhhhh.)
9. Yerba Gardens – San Francisco, California
It may sound like an unsafe setting, but the rooftop at Yerba Gardens in San Francisco is home to one of the most elaborate playgrounds ever constructed. Aside from the ice-skating rink, bowling center and the 130,000 square feet of open space to play in, the playground includes a beautiful 103-year-old hand carved carousel. The Zeum carousel was constructed in 1906 but could not be installed in San Francisco as originally planned because of earthquake issues. It was eventually housed at Luna Park in Seattle, where it was the only piece of equipment to survive a horrific 1911 fire. The city of San Francisco bought the carousel from a collector in 1998 and restored it to its original condition. It now serves at the centerpiece in Yerba Gardens
10. Playground – Boadilla del Monte, Spain
Spanish architects Eduardo Navadijos and Csaba Tarsoly designed this stunning modern playground with the intention of giving children inspiration to pursue their dreams in an airy and cool environment. I’ve never been to Madrid, a mere 30 minutes drive from Boadilla del Monte, but when I do finally get there, this playground is my first stop.
Chic Designer Floating Abodes via [TDG]
Seven cool homes that float
Gone are the days when houseboats were pokey little barges, all of a similar design. Today, you can find some truly amazing, designer floating homes in a variety of different shapes and sizes. Many are eco-friendly while offering the style-conscious homeowner a unique living space.
Here we present seven really cool floating homes:
(Photo: Confused-Direction)
Schwimmhaus
This elegant houseboat, designed by German architects Confused-Direction, is ideal for those looking for a compact, stylish, and environmentally friendly floating home. Built using reclaimed wood from an old farmhouse and other sustainable building materials, the green roof adds to the eco-friendly appeal. The simple-yet-sleek interior design offers all the conveniences you could want and is thoroughly modern and unique. The Schwimmhaus was designed to float around or to stay docked permanently.
(Photo: X-Architects)
Dubai Houseboat
As with most architectural designs coming out of Dubai, this houseboat is simply stunning. The 220-square-meter home was cleverly designed by Dubai-based architectural firm X-Architects. Set on two catamaran beams, this two-story structure is practically encased solely in glass windows, allowing sunlight to flood the interior. It’ll take the average person more than a few bank loans to get their hands on the swish fittings and up-market features of this chic and spacious floating home, even if it’s just to rent for a week!
(Photo: Covey Island Boatworks)
Arctic Houseboat
The term “really cool” takes on new meaning with this amazing houseboat, developed specifically for the Arctic winter. Inspired by the Inuit practice of turning their hunting boats upside down for winter shelter, the builders of this unique structure — Covey Island Boatworks — took the idea to a new level by creating a prefabricated, highly insulated home that can endure harsh climates. Equipped with solar, wind, and marine power systems, this self-contained unit can be placed virtually anywhere. The interior is cozy and compact and contains all the modern conveniences most people crave.
(Photo: Mark Kingsley Architects)
Floating Solar House
Environmentally conscious, UK-based Kingsley Architects have reinvented caravan holidays with these unique and eco-friendly solar-powered houseboats. Apparently, the ingenious design enables the structure to be totally self-sufficient for up to a year at a time. It can also be docked at a floating home community to utilize the site’s power, fresh water, and sewage treatment facilities. Similar in design to a camper van, this 75-square-meter houseboat has an open kitchen and living area space with enclosed sleeping areas in the back.
(Photo: Vladimir Plotkin / Archstoyanie)
Summer Houseboat
This completely unique design by Russian architect Vladimir Plotkin was created for the 2008 Archstoyanie Summer Festival in Russia, where the theme was Noah‘s Ark. A rather odd-looking structure, the giant disc-like living space is suspended above a floating platform and is accessed via ladders. The interior is very compact, but by no means claustrophobic. The lattice walls ensure constant ventilation and the large portholes provide ample natural light.
(Photo: http://www.planeboats.com)
Cosmic Muffin
This extraordinary home certainly gets tongues wagging. Once owned by Howard Hughes, the 1930’s Boeing 307 Stratoliner was converted into a houseboat and is now a famous tourist attraction in Fort Lauderdale. Surprisingly roomy inside, it houses a small sleeping area and bathroom at the rear of the aircraft, while the main hull is dedicated to living space that features a large bar area and even a PC workstation.
(Photo: http://www.keralagreenery.org)
Indian Luxury Houseboat
This beautiful houseboat is an ideal holiday home for those wishing to explore southern India without having to change hotels on a regular basis. This two-bedroom, three-bathroom luxury houseboat is fully air-conditioned and even has a Jacuzzi on board. All the crew are English-speaking, and there is a chef aboard to whip up amazing gourmet meals. What a wonderful way of seeing the rural area of Kerala!
From the staff of moneycompare.com.au
Jumeirah Burj Al Arab Inside Complete View – 7 Star Hotel Dubai: A Gold Plated Dream!!! via [Jumeirah Group]
OPULUXE Lounge Grooves™ PlayList
via [YouTube]
Burj Al Arab (website link)
Relaxing at the Beach:
An Incredible Sunset:
at Night:




8 restaurants and lounges, including:
Al Muntaha – which means the ultimate or the highest at 200 metres above the Arabian Gulf, offering modern European cuisine
Al Mahara – seafood restaurant accessible by a three minute virtual submarine voyage. Magnificent oval aquarium visible throughout the restaurant
Al Iwan – sea view restaurant. Finest Arabian hospitality with décor of dramatic gold, red and black
Majlis Al Bahar – a casual alfresco restaurant serving mediterranean specialities
Sahn Eddar – at the base of the world’s tallest atrium and offering light fine fare and Afternoon Tea
Juna Lounge – a stylish and intimate lounge with a fine selection of cigars
Skyview Bar – located adjacent to Al Muntaha, a wonderful location for pre- and post dinner drinks
Bab Al Yam – cafe restaurant with a relaxing atmosphere and stunning views
