Highlights of Beijing| Mar 10, 2008
Built in the early 1400s by the Ming dynasty Emperor Yongle (well, his 200000 labourers at any rate), this royal complex was home to 24 emperors and empresses from the Ming and Qing dynasties for over five centuries ... Yet another World Heritage Site (1998), the Temple of Heaven, which was also built during the reign of Emperor Yongle, is the official civic symbol of Beijing and one of the lucky recipients of a $5 ... Every year on the winter solstice, the emperor and his retinue would... (iAfrica.com)
Land of 20 million pianists Mar 10, 2008
The emperor of Chinese instruments, the guqin is a seven-string zither with a 3,000-year pedigree. It is associated with courtly poets and philosophers, including Confucius, but my guqin player, Wu Na, is a distinctly modern incarnation. (Guardian Unlimited)
Desperate deeds by underdogs hung out to dry by corrupt bureaucracy Mar 7, 2008
Some petitioners maintain an almost saintly courtesy and naive hope that the system will work in their favour, a reflection of the traditional Chinese villager's view that if only the Emperor knew what his wicked local mandarins were doing. In 2002, I visited Fu Xiancai, the leader of villagers displaced by the Three Gorges Dam on the Yangtze River who were complaining they had been cheated of their compensation. (Sydney Morning Herald -- World)
Night of splendour Mar 4, 2008
Originally named Yen Er, the princess was the daughter of General Li, the cousin to Emperor Taizong. Selected to be sent to marry the king of Tibet to maintain peace between the nations, the compassionate and well-educated girl was bestowed the title of princess and renamed Wen Cheng, as befitting her new status. (The Star Online, Malaysia)
'Idol' To Camp In California Mar 2, 2008
Also on March 10 authorities will reopen the palace of Emperor Augustus atop the Palatine Hill after decades of restoration. Barbados: Crime against tourists is low here and usually takes the form of petty theft, but twice in January tourist groups on guided tours of the island were held up at gunpoint. (San Francisco Chronicle -- Travel)
Gold-medal hotels Feb 27, 2008
The quiet but central offers luxury rooms positioned around a central courtyard, each styled according to a particular Chinese emperor or dynasty. English is not the best at this hotel, but sign language and smiles work wonders and when it comes to booking rooms. (MSNBC -- Travel)
* Falling in love with Dalat Feb 21, 2008
The summer home of Vietnam's last emperor,Dalat is a temperate city set amid flowers, lakes and waterfalls that attracts honeymooners and wealthy locals alike ... Sites worth seeing in Dalat, the Shangri-la of Vietnam,Emperor Bao Dai's house PHOTOS: BRADLEY WINTERTON ... If you're historically minded, then the summer palace of the last Vietnamese emperor, Bao Dai, is worth a look. (Taipei Times, Taiwan -- World)
Publicis Groupe : Rsultats annuels 2007 Feb 14, 2008
Allstate Insurance (Etats-Unis), Astra Zeneca (Costa Rica), Bally s (Etats-Unis), Coca-Cola (Chine), Coca-Cola (Royaume-Uni), Coca-cola Japan company (Japon), Coke/Red Lounge (Chine), Courts (Singapour), Doof (Royaume-Uni), Emirates Airlines (Dubai), Emperor Group (Chine), Galaxy Entertainment Group (Chine), General Motors (Etats-Unis), GM/Buick & GMC brands (Etats-Unis), Harrah s (Etats-Unis), Heineken (Chine), HP (Singapour), Kellogg s (Royaume-Uni), Learning and Skills Council (Royaume-Uni),... (BusinessWire)
Publicis Groupe: Annual Results 2007 Feb 14, 2008
Web Site: New Business Year 2007 Wins Leo Burnett: Allstate Insurance (United States), Astra Zeneca (Costa Rica), Bally's (United States), Coca-Cola (China), Coca-Cola (United Kingdom), Coca-cola Japan company (Japan), Coke/Red Lounge (China), Courts (Singapore), Doof (United Kingdom), Emirates Airlines (Dubai), Emperor Group (China), Galaxy Entertainment Group (China), General Motors (United States), GM/Buick rands (United States), Harrah's (United States), Heineken (China), HP (Singapore),... (PR Newswire)
Vegas rolls out the red lanterns for high-rollers Feb 8, 2008
Inside the Pearl restaurant at MGM Grand, patrons will get a taste of food once reserved for those who have eaten at Diaoyutai, a series of villas run by the foreign ministry that began as a "fishing terrace" 800 years ago for Emperor Zhangzong of the Jin Dynasty ... One gilded bowl, bearing the characters for "Long live the Emperor," is modeled after the dish China's monarch would use, into which servants would deposit items of his choosing ... "This was the emperor's bowl," Liu said, cupping... (MSNBC -- Travel)
HILLARY LOANS CAMPAIGN $5M; MAY GIVE MORE... Feb 7, 2008
It s amazing how much money Obama s supporters are willing to spend to furnish their emperor with his new clothes. Will they be so willing after he s led us nowhere with his vacant puffery (assuming he could beat McCain after splitting his own party). (The Drudge Report)
China flexes economic muscle with Rio Tinto stake Feb 3, 2008
The figures displayed at the British Museum were a tiny fraction of the massive army commissioned by the first Chinese emperor Qin to guard his family in the afterlife. The full army, when it was discovered in 1974, brought home to the West the military might and the wealth of China more than 2000 years ago at a time when most Europeans regarded anywhere beyond the Continent as a barbarian wasteland. (Telegraph.co.uk)
Miss Ireland upstages lady in red Jan 25, 2008
In one respect, at least, Alistair Darling reminds me of the late Emperor Hirohito. You can tell almost as much about a country from the things they want you to see as the things they would prefer you didn't. (Yahoo News -- Beauty Pageants)
Hillary to Hispanic farm workers: 'Si se pueda is right! That's right, yes we can!'... Jan 23, 2008
He sure took the credit until people noticed Emperor Bill and emperor George had no clothes on ... Billary wants to be our leader, and we her subjects Barack wants to be our collaborator not our emperor. (The Drudge Report)
Travel briefs Jan 6, 2008
Advance tickets for "Terra Cotta Warriors: Guardians of China's First Emperor" at the Bowers are on sale now. The exhibit consists of 20 figures and dozens of a.jpgacts from the tomb of Qin Shi Huang, who is considered the first emperor of a unified China and whose rule began in 221 B.C. Since his tomb was discovered in 1974, nearly 1,000 figures have been excavated, but experts believe that the tomb may contain as many as 7,000 of the statues. (Orangeburg Times and Democrat, SC)
Chinese terra cotta warriors coming to California museum Jan 3, 2008
Advance tickets for "Terra Cotta Warriors: Guardians of China's First Emperor" at the Bowers are on sale now. The exhibit consists of 20 figures and dozens of artifacts from the tomb of Qin Shi Huang, who is considered the first emperor of a unified China and whose rule began in 221 B.C. Since his tomb was discovered in 1974, nearly 1,000 figures have been excavated, but experts believe that the tomb may contain as many as 7,000 of the statues ... Unearthed terra cotta warriors are part of an... (USA Today -- Travel)
Escobar: Embedded with Power pt 2 Dec 26, 2007
PE As far as the PR machines are concerned, congratulations: you have done a "heck of a job", as the Little Emperor would say. "Success" in Iraq has been rebranded so many times that by now the whole country should look like Dubai, and not like the set of a huge disaster movie. (Zmag.org)
China's buried past Dec 23, 2007
The celebrated ancient "army" of thousands of clay sculptures representing warriors that adorned the grave of China's first emperor, Qin Shi huangi, were unearthed after a farmer stumbled upon the emperor's tomb in 1974 in what is considered to be one of the most important archeological finds of the 20th century ... One should not travel halfway around the world to next summer's Olympics without making an extra effort to see the terra-cotta army, left in 210 B.C. to guard the nearby tomb of... (Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, PA)
Japan's Fukuda in a fight for his life Dec 21, 2007
When Fukuda was elected Japans new leader, one senior opposition lawmaker likened him to Yoshinobu Tokugawa, the last Tokugawa shogun before the 1868 Meiji Restoration ended the 265-year-old feudalistic shogunate and restored power to the emperor. The biggest focus of attention in Japanese politics in the new year will be the general election for the House of Representatives that is due by September 2009 at the latest but is very likely to be called earlier, possibly some time next summer. (Asia Times Online)
Wagnerian dramaPassion, confrontation and theatrics on and off stage at La Scala Dec 9, 2007
" Phoenix-like As we passed through the labyrinth of corridors and rehearsal rooms of the newly refurbished La Scala, I remembered that the opera house - originally built at the end of the 18th Century and twice in its history gutted by fire - had recently been closed for three years while the entire stage complex was rebuilt to modern standards. Members of the 135-strong orchestra threatened to disrupt the opening night with a strike Around a stage that looks the size of a football pitch, huge... (BBC News -- Europe)
China may increase number of holidays Nov 7, 2007
Regarded as one of the most important days on the Chinese calendar, the Tomb-Sweeping Day, or Qingming festival, which usually occurs on April 4 or 5 each year, was established by a Chinese emperor in memory of a loyal official who sacrificed himself to save the emperor's life more than 2,500 years ago. The day gradually became a traditional occasion for paying homage to ancestors and departed family members. (Xinhuanet, China)
Warm welcome?State visits to the UK that have been mired in controversy Oct 31, 2007
OCTOBER 1971 - EMPEROR HIROHITO. Veterans and former prisoners of war - angry at Japan's brutal militaristic past - made their feelings known when Emperor Hirohito was received by the Queen on an official state visit ... Emperor Hirohito's 1971 state visit was his first to Britain. (BBC News -- UK)
Bush meetsDalai Lama Oct 17, 2007
A click-through history from the last emperor to the present day. Video. (MSNBC -- Politics)
Debate over the debate Oct 17, 2007
The Emperor has spoken. Let him talk to an empty hall or a collection of toadies. (Sydney Morning Herald -- Australia)
Yeoh: Early detection important Oct 3, 2007
She will be heading for China to finish filming Mummy 3, Tomb of the Dragon Emperor starring Brendan Fraser and Jet Li, in which she plays a sorceress. She will receive her award, Frances highest civilian honour, from ambassador Alain du Boispean at a ceremony tonight. (The Star Online, Malaysia -- News)
Carefree, Car-free In Napa Valley Sep 30, 2007
The city has struck a deal to buy 18 buildings from a man known as Amsterdam's "Emperor of Sex" and close the 51 windows where prostitutes work, but other window displays will remain. For the latest U.S. State Department advisories, phone (888) 407-4747 or visit. (San Francisco Chronicle -- Travel)
Kaiju Shakedown Sep 28, 2007
nominees for "Best Foreign Language Film" from Hong Kong (it's produced by Emperor, the Hong Kong based entertainment company who created pop sensation ) but director Jiang Wen's assistant, the mysteriously named Li, has gone to the press saying that it was never entered for Hong Kong and was always going to be China's submission. "The quality of SUN can be judged by box office figures," Li says cockily. (Variety)
Ancient Chinese Treasure Recovered Sep 21, 2007
The clock, which was designed so each head would spout water for two hours each day and all would spray in unison at noon, was said to be a favorite of the Qianlong emperor. In October 1860, during the Second Opium War, French and British troops sacked the summer palace. (Time.com)
Terracotta army's new UK formation Sep 16, 2007
Now a little bit of China's vast army of 2,000-year-old terracotta warriors - built to protect the First Emperor Qin Shihuangdi in the afterlife - has come to the British Museum in London. And the exhibition, The First Emperor: China's Terracotta Army, looks set to become one of the most successful the museum has ever staged ... And the China we see today, she says, can trace its roots back to around 220BC, and the reign of the First Emperor. (Yahoo News -- Art and Museums)
Estimate for Deporting Illegal Immigrants: $94 Billion Sep 14, 2007
Just look up the notorious Battle of Hadrianopolis which took place on August 9TH, 378 AD. The incompetent Emperor Valens bears a certain resemblance to one George W. Bush. Posted by Andrew J Popper. (New York Times)
Why protest? Sep 4, 2007
I plan to protest, but in a more private manner, I intend to protest by voting 1, for Labour at the next federal election, I consider APEC nothing more than a last hurruh for "Australia's Little Emperor" and his band of buddies, hope he and his mates enjoy themselves ... It wouldn't matter even if the protests were guaranteed to be peaceful, the Little Aussie Emperor would still do everything in his power to silence any dissenters ... " - for what? I bet those who you call "useless" have more... (Sydney Morning Herald -- Australia)
Paddle of the titans Sep 1, 2007
") and Lennon (Lt. Dangle) got really hyped after finding photos of Communist China table tennis training facilities, complete with armed guards and beautiful pagodas. "It was like "something out of 'The Last Emperor,'" the director says. The pair wrote the screenplay in 2001, but it sat around for years until Walken agreed to take the part of the fey kimono-clad villain, Feng. (Bend Weekly)
President is right on history, Iraq Aug 27, 2007
Critics, he noted, insisted that democracy couldn t succeed in Japan because their religion, Shinto, was too fanatical and rooted in the emperor. Unless the emperor was put on trial, any steps we may take to create democracy are doomed to failure, he quoted Russell as saying ... Today, in defiance of the critics and the doubters and the skeptics, Japan retains its religion (and its emperor) and cultural traditions, and stands as one of the world s greatest societies, said Bush. (Atlanta Journal-Constitution)
German chancellor heads to China Aug 26, 2007
Merkel will be in China until Wednesday for talks with President Hu Jintao and Premier Wen Jiabao before her first visit to Japan, where she will meet Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and have an audience with Emperor Akihito. The chancellor has the dual function of the leader of Europe's biggest economy and the president of the Group of Eight most industrialised nations, a role Japan will take over in 2008. (India Times, India)
Merkel to Push for Post-Kyoto Climate Pledge on 5-Day Trip to China, Japan Aug 25, 2007
On Aug. 29, she flies to Tokyo for talks with Abe and Emperor Akihito, then travels to Kyoto by train. She goes on to visit German athletes at the World Athletic Championships in Osaka, before returning to Berlin on Sept. 1. (Bloomberg -- Germany)
Budget Travel: Panda petting zoo cutest thing Aug 15, 2007
Ever since Empress Wu Zetian sent a pair of panda bears to the Japanese emperor around A.D. 700, China's public face has been represented by the furry goodwill ambassadors, who even forced a smile from Richard Nixon. Today, we noticed upon arrival in Shanghai, you don't see dour Mao nearly as much as Jingjing, the flower-crowned cartoon panda that's one of the Beijing 2008 Olympic mascots, and just the first in the parade of pandas that adorn China's storefronts, advertising, clothing, and... (CNN -- Travel)
President Bush doing a great job Jul 30, 2007
The truth is clear now: this sneering, swaggering emperor has no clothes. " Captain Crunch wrote on Jul 17, 2007 5:14 AM:" Jim S: You might also want to note that before the Democratic take over of Congress gasoline was $2. (Bismarck Tribune, ND)
Toyota Anxiety With Defects, Recalls Accompanies Toyoda Drive to President Jul 25, 2007
It reminds me a little bit of the making of the Chinese emperor,'' Press says, referring to the Toyodas' grooming of Akio. The family is the business, and the business is the family. (Bloomberg)
Phillips crab empire mourns its emperor Jul 18, 2007
Steve Phillips put the future of his family-owned seafood business in the hands of an outsider who grew to be a trusted partner and his best friend. But Mark W. Sneed, president of Phillips Foods and Seafood Restaurants, died suddenly of a heart attack at the age of 50 Monday, leaving the company with a huge personal and professional void. (SunSpot.net)
If you believed in numerology, you'd be getting married about now Jul 9, 2007
The legend, Agence France-Presse relates, goes like this: The Bohemian king and Holy Roman Emperor Charles IV, who was passionate about numerology, decided to launch construction at 5:31 a.m. on July 9 after consulting his astrologers and astronomers. In 1357, they came up with the 9. (International Herald Tribune)
Museum thinks big after Tutankhamun loss Jul 6, 2007
The museum also announced yesterday that 30,000 tickets have been booked for The First Emperor: China s Terracotta Army which will feature some of the greatest finds from the Chinese ruler s treasure trove for the afterlife two months before the exhibition opens. That is astonishing, Mr MacGregor added. (Times Online)
How to project 'soft power' Jun 23, 2007
A host of other figures are mentioned as well: Holy Roman Emperor Frederick II, who refused to lead a crusade against Islam, instead opening his new university in Naples to Muslim scholars in the 13th century; Matteo Ricci, a Jesuit who propagated his faith in China and other parts of Asia four centuries ago; Daniel Bliss, who founded the American University of Beirut; and Albert Giesecke, an American who helped modernize Peru's Ministry of Education early in the 20th century. World War I marked... (Asia Times Online)
Leisure travelers favor shopping Jun 23, 2007
King Fook, Emperor and other stores selling fine watches are concentrated around Queens Road Central. Look there for high-profile retailers including Louis Vuitton and Gucci. (MSNBC -- Travel)
Luxury Shopping Trips Jun 17, 2007
King Fook, Emperor and other stores selling fine watches are concentrated around Queen s Road Central. Look there for high-profile retailers including Louis Vuitton and Gucci. (Forbes)
* Johnny Neihu's NewsWatch: The disaffected are the surest bet May 26, 2007
But if that ad hasn't laid Wang's presidential ambition barer than a veteran protester outside the former Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall (now retitled "Tomb of Democracy") then I'm the Yellow Emperor. I'm not a betting man -- well, apart from during the baseball season, and when I play mahjong with my buddies, and on the occasional freebie trip to Macau (courtesy of Cathy) -- but I'm willing to put money on a Wang bid after witnessing that. (Taipei Times, Taiwan -- World Business)
Barouski: Mining in Congo May 16, 2007
Barrick also works with Australia-based Emperor Gold, who is a minority stakeholder in Barricks Porgera mine project in Papau New Guinea. Emperors Non-Executive Director Robert J. McDonald was a Managing Director of NM Rothschild (Australia) Limited and also held numerous positions with Rio Tinto, who also mines in Papau New Guinea ... Emperor is a subsidiary of DRDGold Limited, based in South Africa. (Zmag.org)
Selden: Forgotten Holocaust May 9, 2007
For its part, the Japanese state continues to reject official reparations claims to such war victims as Korean and Chinese forced laborers and the military comfort women (sexual slaves), while the war remains a fiercely contested intellectual-political issue as demonstrated by the decades long conflicts over textbook treatments of colonialism and war, the Yasukuni shrine (the symbol of emperor-centered nationalism, empire and war), the military comfort women, and the Nanjing Massacre... (Zmag.org)
Met's roamin' empire Apr 24, 2007
Caracalla, emperor from 211 to 217, gathers his eyebrows and puckers his forehead into a scowl at some unseen rival ... An earlier emperor, Antonious Pius (138-161), gazes benignly across the centuries, his mouth firmly set, his expression unruffled. (Newsday -- New York City)
Heightened awareness Apr 22, 2007
The steps are worn in the center, scalloped over centuries by millions of footfalls of those -- emperors and peasants, communists and capitalists -- who have come to worship gods and goddesses at secluded shrines and in soaring temples ... Emperors, keepers of religion for the masses, climbed Tai Shan to communicate with the Jade Emperor , a powerful ruler of heaven and earth ... At the very top, a small group stopped near the Jade Emperor temple and a blank stone tablet said to have been... (Boston Globe)
The return of Zhang's empress Apr 20, 2007
The climax has tens of thousands of rebels pouring into the imperial courtyard intent on overthrowing the emperor ... "In an autocratic society and system, all power belongs to the emperor," Gong says ... "No other power can shake it. I think the emperor makes that point clear in the film. Director Zhang hasn't spelled it out in public himself, but that's the implicit meaning.". (The Age, Australia -- Entertainment)
Making music in China Apr 18, 2007
They visited the ancient Forbidden City, imperial residence for some 24 Chinese emperors. And they climbed the steps to the massive Temple of Heaven, where even the emperor himself used to pray to the gods of the harvest for a good crop ... The band's itinerary included a performance on the Great Wall of China, a visit to Fu Xiao Primary School (sister school of Greenwich's Parkway Elementary School) and a tour of the Terra Cotta Warriors museum, where 7,000 life-sized clay soldiers were... (Greenwich Time)
'I don't go to Hollywood. Hollywood goes to China' Apr 7, 2007
The film also features a massacre - orchestrated by an emperor determined to cling on to power - and a cover-up, which prompted more than one critic to draw comparisons with the Tiananmen Square killings in 1989. Gong has mixed feelings about 1989, when she was one of the students on the square. (Guardian Unlimited)
Jackie Chan finds successors through TV show Apr 5, 2007
The TV show is jointly produced by Beijing TV, JCE Entertainment Ltd, China Film Group and Hong Kong-based Emperor Entertainment Group. Applications for the show began on January 1. (Xinhuanet, China)
Rene Fleming charms her way through Asia Apr 4, 2007
" Of course, Fleming is hardly leaving the circuit herself. She has not missed a season with New York's Metropolitan Opera since her 1991 debut there, and now says she is booked for at least the next five years - with Massanet's "Thais" in the 2008-09 season, Rossini's "Armida" in 2010-11 and Bellini's "Norma" in 2011-12. Though she is finding new places to perform, she is heading in the same direction as classical music promoters who are finding aging, shrinking audiences in the West, and... (International Herald Tribune)
Pollen clue to clay army origins Apr 2, 2007
The army was designed to guard the tomb of China's first emperor ... The 2,200-year-old clay army of 8,000 soldiers, 300 horses and 200 chariots guards the tomb of Qin Shihuang, the first emperor of China ... Pollen from the terracotta horse came mainly from trees; a similar pollen signature is found in soil taken from pits in the emperor's mausoleum. (Yahoo News -- Anthropology and Archaeology)
Wooten on Dems & Iraq Mar 16, 2007
JBM for god, emperor, president, governor, senator, mayor, dog catcher, religious scholar, Pope, imam, emir and councilman. He knows it all. (Atlanta Journal-Constitution)
The Politics of Apology for Japans Comfort Women Mar 6, 2007
While other nations were either outright conquered by various Chinese dynasties or maintained as vassal states on the suffrage of the Chinese emperor, Japan refused to pay tribute and turned back two Chinese invasions with the aid of the kamikaze divine wind. For milennia, the emperor of Japan was the only Asian potentate that could treat the Chinese emperor as a peer, rather than a superior. (New York Times)
The String of Pearls Feb 12, 2007
In 1405, Emperor Yongle of the Ming Dynasty dispatched a treasure fleet of 62 ships under command of the explorer, Zheng He. Four of his ships were some of the largest wooden sailing vessels ever built, then or since, measuring over 400 feet long and 160 feet wide. (Ocnus.net)
Bush: 'I'm the decision-maker' Jan 28, 2007
0f course, all the townspeople wildly praised the magnificent clothes of the emperor, afraid to admit that they could not see them, until a small child said ... This was whispered from person to person until everyone in the crowd was shouting that the emperor had nothing on ... The emperor heard it and felt that they were correct, but held his head high and finished the procession. (Chicago Tribune)
Chinese film 'Lost' in censor haze Jan 26, 2007
Hong Kong's Emperor Motion Pictures is in negotiations to invest and acquire rights for Hong Kong, Macau and Southeast Asia. Copyright 2007, Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. (Variety)
Wife, daughter of 'Crocodile Hunter' discuss life on the wild side Jan 20, 2007
"Peppa said the ceremony will be held in honor of Zeus, king of the ancient gods, but did not give other details. The daily Ethnos newspaper, citing the group's application to the Culture Ministry to use the site, said the 90-minute event would include hymns, dancers, torchbearers, and worshippers in ancient costumes.Greece's archaic religion is believed to have several hundred official followers, mainly middle-aged and elderly academics, lawyers and other professionals. They typically share a... (North County Times)
France frees Russian billionaire Jan 14, 2007
French right look to 'Emperor Nicolas. FEATURES, VIEWS, ANALYSIS. (Yahoo News -- France)
The great showman Jan 13, 2007
Indeed, his finest conversation piece, A Performance of the Indian Emperor, also 1732, actually shows a play: as the children of the great and good perform Dryden's drama of love and conquest, the aristocratic audience enact their own comedy of manners beneath the grave gaze of Isaac Newton's bust. When portraits and conversation pieces failed to bring in sufficient cash, Hogarth decided, he said, to "turn my thoughts to a still more new way of proceeding, viz painting and engraving modern moral... (Guardian Unlimited)
* World News Quick Take Jan 12, 2007
The Taj Mahal, built by Mogul Emperor Shah Jahan for his favorite wife, Mumtaz Mahal, houses the graves of the Muslim emperor, his wife and other Mogul royalty. The white marble-domed monument is among the country's most popular historical sites. (Taipei Times, Taiwan -- World)
Two dead after strong storms rip path from southern Louisiana to Georgia Jan 7, 2007
After all, it's just regaining earlier glories: the 12th-century Emperor Frederick I Barbarossa of the Hohenstaufen dynasty built a residence in Gelnhausen, making it a center of sorts for the Hohenstaufen empire. On a rainy January afternoon, the town didn't seem to be in the center of anything, pretty and sleepy with its ancient church steeples, half-timbered houses and quiet cobblestone streets. (North County Times)
