Raja Ravi Varma was born in 1848 in Kerala, India. His father was a respected scholar and his mother was a well-known poet and writer. Varma demonstrated his talent early in life and at a young age he received the patronage of a relative, which allowed him to begin his formal training. He would go on to be recognized internationally and play an integral part in the progress of Indian art. His work in miniatures is included as part of the permanent collection at the National Gallery of Modern Art. He is one of the most prominent artists to emerge from Kerala, and his work can sometimes be found at the best hotels Kerala.

Varma’s work is considered to be among some of the best examples of European academic theory fused with traditional Indian traditions. He achieved great recognition for his interpretations of scenes from the epics, such as the Mahabharata and Ramayana. His primary medium was painting and he had an extremely successful career. He is well known for his portrayal of women wearing saris. He presents them beautifully in graceful and shapely forms. He traveled throughout India to find subjects for his paintings and often modeled them after Hindu Goddesses. He gained world recognition in 1873 when he won an award for an exhibition he had in Vienna.

He had an interesting personal life that included marrying Rani Bhageerathi Bayi of the Mavelikara Royal Family and together they had three sons and two daughters. Tragedy struck the home in 1912 when their oldest soon disappeared and was never found. This had a permanent effect on Varma’s outlook. Their second son, Prince Rama Varma, followed in is father’s footsteps and became an artist. He studied at the JJ School of Arts. Their oldest daughter, Princess Mahaprabha, is preserved through history through her appearance in two of Varma’s most prominent paintings.

Much of the city of Barcelona shuts down during the summer months. However, at least one major cultural celebration event takes center stage in this beautiful coastal city. The Festival Grec is a multiple art genre event that includes theatre, dance and music. Performers even take to the streets and present impromptu scenes and monologues for visiting tourists and locals alike. Information for the festival should be available to out of town guests who are staying at one of the 5 star Barcelona hotels.

Montjuic is a large hill on the southwest edge of the city and over looks the splendor of the harbor. The Greek amphitheatre on Montjuic is one of the most well known venues of the festival. This is also the birthplace of the Festival Grec. In 1976 a group of passionate writers, directors and actors got together at the amphitheatre and staged some performances. Another major attraction on Montjuic is the Magic Fountain. The fountain is an amazing combination of light, music, water and motion. The first performance of the Fountain was in 1929 as part of the Great Universal Exhibition. It was designed by Carles Buigas. Other prominent venues for the festival include Teatre Nacional de Catalunya and L’Auditori.

Festival Grec, as it is commonly refereed to, takes place every summer and this year will feature performances from some of the top artists around the world. Among them are Joss Stone, Brian Wilson and Marianne Faithful. It attracts not only international stars but an international audience as well. The amphitheatre is located near Barcelona’s Olympic Stadium. The stadium was originally built in 1927 to host the 1929 Barcelona World’s Fair. It was rebuilt in 1986 to host the 1992 Olympics.

For many years, it has been common for the people of New York to vacation in Florida.  To have a brief respite, especially during the winter months in the city.  It was a fad at one time, for the travelers to purchase baby alligators, and then to bring them back to the city as souvenirs for their children.  The alligators would become too big, and would end up, most often times, being flushed down the toilet.  Urban legend has it that some of these animals survived and bred in the sewer systems of Manhattan.  Growing into giant alligators just under the streets of the city.  And they continue to survive to this day, under the clubs, under the apartments, under the five star New York hotels, remaining hidden from the eyes of the many humans that live on those streets.  So the legend goes.

In 1935 an 8 foot gator was found in East Harlem at the the bottom of a manhole.  It unfortunately was found by teen aged boys, and did not survive.  At the time however, no one actually believed that it had been living down there, just that it may have fallen off of a ship coming from the Everglades, that it made its way up the Hudson River and ended up in Harlem.  In 1959, a book was written by Robert Daley.  This book has become known as a standardized account, of urban legends.  The story follows a retired sewer worker as he discovers the ‘monsters’ in the sewers under New York City, and takes it upon himself to rid the city of this terrifying threat.  This tale was told again in 1960.  The ‘NY White’ was a term previously used to describe the albino alligators, but it was the 60’s, and the legend states that someone in the city had flushed, not baby alligators, but very potent marijuana seeds down the toilet during a drug raid.  No one has ever seen the plants, mind you…as those interested were, of course,  afraid of all the alligators that lived down there.

There have been sightings of alligators over the years, one in 2001 in Central Park and another in 2006 in Brooklyn.  But experts state that the sewer systems of New York are not conducive for their survival.  It is just simply to cold most of the time for them to live, and an alligator needs round the year warmth just to survive, and definitely to reproduce and thrive into colonies under the streets.  Further, the sewers are just too polluted for most animal life, save perhaps the rats. The found alligators are escaped pets, the officials state.  But it does add a bit of excitement, to a late night walk, and passing the steaming man hole covers, and to the imagination and to the lure and legend of such a city.

In New Delhi today, it’s evident that the market for Indian contemporary art is expanding both regionally and internationally.  Sales are strong in showrooms and galleries.  Anupam Poddar is one of today’s most important collectors.  In a short period of time, this young New Delhi–based collector has acquired many works by artists from India, and while doing so has been instrumental in attracting international attention to the Indian art scene while continuing to cultivate it locally.

The Devi Art Foundation, a short drive from the five star hotels in New Delhi, is India’s first nonprofit space and in fact, is India’s first museum of contemporary art.  Artwork from the Poddar family collection form the foundation of the exhibitions at Devi.   Anupam Poddar states that his interest in contemporary art was cultivated by his mother, and his enthusiasm for collecting was the same. He began acquiring art passionately, filling his family home with artwork that he had selected. “There is much care that goes into choosing what is installed,” he says. “It is important for me to be continuously interested in the work and able to live with it.” What does interest Poddar is art that is challenging and often provocative.

In a country where public exhibitions of contemporary art are hard to find, India’s government-run National Gallery of Modern Art seldom shows contemporary work. As interest and commerce in contemporary art increase, other venues, comparable to Devi, begin to emerge. A modern art museum designed by Swiss architects Herzog & de Meuron is currently under construction in Calcutta. That museum is scheduled to open in late 2013.

The city of Kolkata was where literacy and artistic expression and thought was born in India.  This has long been a city known for the revolutionary spirit and heritage of the country.  Appreciation for literature and art has made Kolkata a very special and incredible place where new artists, writers and musicians are welcomed and embraced, in a furious manner.  And as many large cities known fortheir appreciation for the arts, such as Chicago, Manhattan or San Francisco, they have a very strong community ties.

Meeting places such as community centers and clubs, cafes and five star Kolkata hotels, often have people meeting for discussions during breakfast or into the evening hours.  Painters and writers and philosophers gather around tables to discuss the issues of the day, the world, their work, and their political and cultural views of society.  In Kolkata, these discussions have gone into the streets, onto the walls as graffiti has become a popular way of expressing ideas.  Nothing is held back, not witty and intellectual banter, nor slander that can be considered a bit outrageous, nor caricatures of political offices.  It is a very intellectually free society.

Many of the buildings are regularly maintained to preserve the artistic integrity of the architecture.  Motifs include styles from all periods of architectural history, from the Baroque era, to the Roman and the Mughal.  Structures have been placed on the list of protected historical buildings.  Some buildings are in a state of decay however, until those who are able, restore and renovate them.  There are many museums of history and art, that celebrate the times in which various works were produced.

As well as with the appreciation of the visual arts, drama and theater and film are supported.  Everything from main stream movie production to folk theater is celebrated.  This appreciation extends to the world of high fashion, music and food as well.  Many book fairs, music festivals and fashion shows occur each year, and the most popular and well respected works of the writers have been translated into various languages.  New, pop music from India is finding its way in the world as well, fusions of the traditional with jazz or rock.  This is a city like none other in India, and welcomes those in the world of the arts with open and anticipatory arms.

One of the most popular tourist sites in America, is the Empire State building in Manhattan.  This one structure held the title of the tallest building in the world for forty years.  The famous building has starred and held supporting roles in over 100 films, and is one of the first places visitors go when in NY for the first time.  This is part of one of the most incredible skylines, most recognized, and sits on a corner downtown among other New York restaurants and historical attractions.  It has come to symbolize the spirit of the people of the city.  Built during the Depression, it stands as testimony to strength and will of New Yorkers, something that continues to this day.

This building was part of a race, a competition between two car companies actually, Chrysler and General Motors.  The two men heading up those companies at the time, and in competition with each other were Walter Chrysler and John Raskob.  It was quite simple, involved  just… who could complete the tallest skyscraper first.  Raskob’s commission to task, included members of the DuPont family and corporation and Alfred E. Smith, a previous New York governor.

The project was started in 1930 and took just one year, and one month…45 days to be exact to finish.  All phases of the construction were completed ahead of schedule, and as it was during the Depression, the materials necessary for the construction were priced relatively low.  The land and the cost of construction is  just over 40 million dollars.  Herbert Hoover, the current US president at the time, turned the lights on at the Empire State Building, on the first day of May in 1931.  The famous observation deck, providing views of the entire city of Manhattan as well as the Hudson River and banks that border New Jersey.

And now, the building, though no longer holding the ‘tallest building in the world’ achievement, still holds visual, as well as romantic titles.  Visually, depending on the holiday or the particular celebration the colors of the lights atop it change.  And romantically, well, this building is New York.  It symbolizes a city and the people of that city.  And no person who has ever stood on the deck can not be affected by the history of a city, that for all intents and purposes, was the beginning of an entire country.

Cuba’s big news today, now that Pres. Obama has lifted old restrictions on U.S. family members’ Cuba visits. See the Los Angeles Times and USA TODAY’s coverage, and a Miami Herald story about airline service. (A flight from Miami takes 45 minutes each way and costs about $500 round trip.)

The travel restrictions, coupled with the broader push in Congress to allow all American to visit, has many people asking: Can Cuba’s existing hotels handle a potential flood of visitors?

This AP story suggests that Cuba could easily be overwhelmed by a broad American influx.

Cuba has only about 42,000 hotel rooms – or about as many as Detroit, and many are already filled with Canadians and Europeans, the story says. (Operators include Spanish hotel and resort chain Sol Melia.) Add eager Americans to the mix, and you could see sold-out nights and soaring prices. Plenty of people to enjoy the wonderful Latin music and sultry nights…