Florianopolis is located in Brazil and is the capital city of the state of Santa Catarina. This city covers an area of one hundred and sixty-eight square miles an has a population in excess of four hundred thousand people. This is a city that can trace its roots back over four thousand years when the area was occupied by the Carijos Indians. The first European settlers came to the area in the sixteenth century. This is when the Portuguese arrived to the area and named it Ilha dos Patos. It would retain this name for approximately twelve years when it was renamed Ilha de Santa Catarina Santa Catarina Island. Official settlement of the area, however, wouldn’t occur until 1673 when the bandeirante Francisco Dias Velho’s agricultural company settled the area. Five years later, they built a chapel named Nossa Senhora do Desterro and the area began to grow into a village. In the early seventeenth century, the Portuguese crown elevated it to town status and named it Nossa Senhora do Desterro.

Because of its location between the cities of Rio de Janeiro and Buenos Aires, the area began to flourish from trade and the population began to increase exponentially. The peak of this population growth occurred during the mid eighteenth century and the city developed industries such as agriculture, linen and cotton production. In 1893, the name of the city was changed from Desterro to Florianopolis, in homage to Brazillian president Marechal Floriano Peixoto. Today, the major economic activity of the city is based upon tourism. This is due to popular attractions in the city which include its forty-seven beaches and its many historical attractions. Due to this rapid influx of foreign money, the city has been able to significantly build up its infrastructure. Nearly one hundred percent of the city is now supplied with electricity and the city enjoys a literacy rate of over ninety-seven percent. Major educational facilities in the city include the Universidade Federal de Santa Catarina, Universidade do Estado de Santa Catarina, Universidade do Sul de Santa Catarina, Centro Federal de Educacao Tecnológica de Santa Catarina, Universidade do Vale do Itajaí, Complexo de Ensino Superior de Santa Catarina and Faculdade Estácio de Sa.

The primary attraction to tourist visiting Florianopolis is its fine and beautiful beaches. One of the more popular of the forty-seven beaches around the city is Barra da Lagoa. Barra da Lagoa was originally a fisherman’s village, but is now one of the reknowned spots in the world for surfing. Ingleses Beach is one of the preferred beaches in the city for tourist. This beach is often frequented by many sand-boarders and this beach is strewn with many sand dunes. Armacao Beach is the perfect spot for those looking for the archaeological sites of Florianopolis. There are many ancient ruins here, including the Santa Anna Church. Campeche Beach contains white sands and the waves are very rough. The strength of the waves makes this an attractive beach for surfers. Joaquina Beach is yet another prime surfing location. It is also the beach that has the best facilities for tourist. It contains public showers, nightime lights and even a rock climbing complex. Also located here are lifeguards, the police station and many, many bars. For those looking for a natural beach then Santinho Beach is the one to visit. This location is prized for its innate beauty and harmonious surroundings. There are also ancient inscriptions that were carved into the rocks over five thousand years ago.

The city of Florianopolis is also home to a number of bars, restaurants and hotels. Prominent nighclubs in the city include Warung Beach Club, Ibiza Nightclub, Ilheu Bar, Quiosque da Mole, Cafe Cancun, Ilha Do Cascaes, Café Cancum, Taiko and Lago da Conceicao. Popular restaurants in the city include El Divino Restaurante, Restaurante Confraria das Artes, Hosteria Italiana Sapore Di Sale and Pousada e Restaurante Do Museu. Hotels in the area include Hotel Sofitel, Porto da Ilha Hotel, Mercure Apartments Florianopolis Lindacap, Praia Brava Hotel, Hotel Florianópolis Maratea Mare Praia da Cachoeira, Mercure Apartments Florianopolis Itacorubi and Hotel Boutique Villas Del Sol y Mar.

Rheims is a city that lies eighty miles northeast of Paris in the Champagne region of France. This city covers an area of eighteen square miles and has a population of almost one hundred and ninety thousand residents. Prior to the Roman invasion of the northern portion of Gaul, Rheims, was the capital of the Remi Tribe, around the nine century BC. When Julius Caesar conquered Gaul around the sixth century BC, the Remi aligned themselves with the Romans against the barbarian hourdes, and as a result granted the imperial favor of Rome. By the third century, Christianity was adopted by the town and St. Sixtus of Reims established the Rheims bishopric. Rheims repelled the Visigoth hourdes during the fourth century, but Atilla the Hun would invade the city in the mid fifth century.

Around the tenth century Rheims would move on to become a center of intellectualism. Archbishop Adalberon erected schools which featured the liberal arts as their core curriculum. In he twelfth century, Louis VII bestowed Rheims a communal charter. During the fifteenth century, the Treaty of Troyes ceded it to the English government. During the nineteenth century, anti Napoleonic armies would capture the town several times and when the Germans prevailed during the Franco-Prussian War, they made it the seat of their governor. During World War I, Rheims was severely damaged by German bombing. Between World War I and World War II, Rheims slowly began rebuilding its infrastructure, but when World War II broke out, the city was once again damaged. After the war, General Eisenhower received the surrender of the German Wehrmact on May 7.

Over the years, the city of Rheims has been the birthplace of many notable and famous people. Some of the more prominent residents from the city include Nicolas de Grigny, Jean-Baptiste Colbert, Paul de Dinechin, Jean-Baptiste de la Salle, Adolphe d’Archiac, Maurice Halbwachs, Patrick Poivre d’Arvor, Robert Pires, Adeline Wuilleme, Roger Caillois, Paul Fort, Eugene Courmeaux, Jean Baudrillard, Jean-Baptiste Drouet, Nicolas Eugene Geruzez and Henri Marteau. Rheims is also a city that is known as one of the main hubs of champagne production. Some of the biggest champagne producing companies have their headquarters in the city. Many champagne companies use the maze of caves that exist underneath the city to age their product. These caves go back thousands of years to the Roman Empire. Rheims is also a city that is known for its historical heritage and many attractions that prompt millions of visitors each year to visit.

A popular attraction in the city, and one that attracts over five hundred thousand tourist a year, is the Notre-Dame de Reims, known as Our Lady of Rheims in English. This is a Roman Catholic cathedral that was the location where many French kings were crowned. It was built to replace an older church that was destroyed by fire in the early thirteenth century. Notre-Dame de Reims was completed towards the end of the thirteenth century, all except the western front which was built in the fourteenth century. The fourteenth century constructions kept faithful to the previous designs, and the unity of the church’s style is a testament to that fact. During this time, the nave was lengthened to accommade large crowds. The church features two towers which rise over two hundred and sixty feet high. The southern tower holds two large bells. One of the bells weighs over eleven tons and is nicknamed “Charlotte:”. During the end of the nineteenth century, the French National Assembly appropriated over eighty thousand sterling pounds for repairs of the facade and balustrades. The cathedral was heavily damaged during World War I by German artilliary fire. This resulted in a fire that damaged the wood parts of the cathedral and caused the melting of the lead roof, which in turn destroyed the bishop’s palace. After the war, an ambitious restoration took place on the cathedral and it was reopened in 1938. The exterior of the cathedral features three portals that contain many sculptured figures. The middle portal is dedicated to the Virgin Mary and contains a rose window that is decorated heavily with statues. The interior of the church is about four hundred and fifty-five feet long, ninety-eight feet wide and one hundred and twenty-five feet high. It consist of a nave, transepts, a choir and an apse with chapels. It also has stained glass windows that were created in the thirteenth through twentieth centuries.

Located just over a mile from Notre-Dame de Rheims is Saint Remi Basilica, named after the patron saint of Rheims, St.Remi. This basilica is almost the size of Notre Dame de Rheims and was constructed during the eleventh through fifteenth centuries, with most of the construction being completed during the eleventh century. This basilica is also the final resting place for many royal figures, though they are buried in unmarked graves. The most prominent of these include Louis IV, Carloman King of the Franks, Henri d’Orleans, Queen Frederonne, Lothair I and Gerberga of Saxony. Inside the basilica is the St. Remi Museum. This museum features tapestries from the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries, furniture, weapons, glasswork and jewelry. Another part of the museum is a military exhibition.

Other prominent and popular attractions in the city of Rheims include Maison de Pommery, Musee des Beaux-Arts, Palais du Tau, Salle de Reddition, Taittinger, Porte de Mars, Fort de Fresnes, Chateau de Conde, Reims-Gueux, Foujita chapel, Mumm and Veuve Clicquot-Ponsardin. The city of Rheims is also home to numerous restaurants, cafes and hotels. Prominent restaurants and cafes in the city include Le Foch Restaurant, Le Millenaire, Version Originale, Le Chateau Des Crayeres, La Vigneraie restaurant d’affaires and the Brasserie Flo Reims. Prominent hotels in the city of Rheims include the Grand Hotel Continental, Hotel Kyriad Reims Centre, Hotel des Arcades, Hotel Ibis Reims Centre, Grand Hotel Templiers, Hotel Porte Mars and the Hotel De La Paix. The city a beautiful place to visit or spend a weekend at.

Newcastle upon Tyne is a city located in Northern England and is situated in the county of Tyne and Wear. It covers an area of forty-three square miles and has a population of two hundred and seventy-three thousand people. Newcastle upon Tyne is located on the Tyne River and is the nineteenth most populous city in England. The city can trace its history back to a Roman fort known as Pons Aelius. Pons Aelius was a popular trade hub and also a strategic military position for the Roman Empire. At the height of the city’s popularity it had well over two thousand residents. When the Romans left the area in the fifth century, the area became a part of the Anglo-Saxon kingdom called Northumbria. It was during this time that the city experienced a number of attacks by the Danes, which left the city in ruins. In the eleventh century, the son of William the Conqueror realized the strategic position of the area and built a wooden fort and palisade on the site. The site would then come to be known as New Castle.

Throughout the thirteenth century, and well beyond, the city of Newcastle would become England’s fortress of the north. A twenty-five foot stone wall was erected around the town to protect it from enemy forces during the border war with Scotland. By the fourteenth century, Henry IV incorporated it and assigned it a sheriff. The city would go through a period of continued growth brought on by a coal monopoly that the city had in the area. Other industries soon began to thrive and by the eighteenth century Newcastle was the country’s fourth largest print center. The city also developed a thriving glass industry. During the nineteenth century, Newcastle would become the leader in heavy engineering and shipbuilding which added much to its prosperity. Today, the economic core of the city is based upon service and retail sales. Its now the British or regional headquarters of several companies including Bellway, Go-Ahead Group, O Communications, Newcastle Building Society, Northern Rock, The Sage Group, Fenwick and Formica Limited.

Newcastle upon Tyne is a city that is known for its bustling nightlife. The city is populated with many bars, nightclubs and restaurants. As of late, it is also known for being a popular destination among European tourist flocking to the city for stag and hen parties. Newcastle upon Tyne has such a robust nightlife it consistently makes it onto the country’s top ten night spot list. The city’s main concentration of pubs and bars are located around the Bigg Market area of the city center. Also located in the center of the city is “The Gate”. This is an indoor entertainment complex that has clubs, a couple of bars, restaurants and a twelve screen multiplex movie theater. Newcastle upon Tyne is also known as a gastronomical paradise that has a huge selection restaurants from various ethnic groups. Cuisines represented in the city include Greek, Italian, French, Spanish, American, Mexican, Persian, Polish, Moroccan, Japanese, Mongolian, Vietnamese, Chinese and Indian. Over the past few years the city has also seen a noted increase in the number of upscale restaurants. Notable restaurants in the city include Frankie & Benny’s New York Italian Restaurant & Bar, Nando’s, Latif Restaurant, Pitcher & Piano, At Bangkok Cafe, Blake’s, Starters and Puds, Spago Restaurant, Thai Siam Restaurant, Dragon House and Marco Polo Restaurant & Bar.

One of the most popular tourist attractions in the city is The Castle. This is the original castle that the city derived its name from. It consist of two buildings, The Black Gate and the Castle Keep. This site has been an important defensive positions since the Roman times. Originally it was a Bailey style wooden keep, but was rebuilt in stone in the twelfth century. The building measures sixty-two feet by fifty-six feet and is over eighty feet tall. From the castle’s battlements visitors can get fantastic views of the River Tyne, Newcastle Central Station and St Nicholas’s Cathedral. St Nicholas’s Cathedral is the most northernly diocese of the Anglican Church of England and is the seat of the Bishop of Newcastle. The cathedral was built in the fourteenth century and its most notable feature is its spire. The lantern shaped spire was used for hundreds of years as a beacon for sailors traveling down the river. The tower measure thirty-six feet by thirty-five feet and is one hundred and ninety-six feet tall. Other prominent attractions in the city include Hadrian’s Wall, the Theatre Royal, the Journal Tyne Theatre, the Round, the People’s Theatre, Morden Tower, Newcastle’s Chinatown, Town Moor, Eldon Square Shopping Centre, Central Arcade, St Mary’s Cathedral, the Church of St Thomas the Martyr and Jesmond Parish Church.

Another prominent attraction in Newcastle upon Tyne is the Baltic Centre for Contemporary Art. The Baltic Centre for Contemporary Art is located alongside the Gateshead Millennium Bridge and was opened in 2002. Since its opening it has had over three million visitors. Exhibitions change on a regular basis, but past exhibitions have included Zoe Walker and Neil Bromwich, Kendell Geers, The Zabludowicz Collection and Fabien Verschaere. Other museums and art galleries located in Newcastle upon Tyne include the The Discovery Museum, The Great North Museum, Newburn Hall Motor Museum, Laing Art Gallery and the Gallagher & Turner Gallery. The city is also home to a number of music venues. One of the largest ones in the city is the Metro Radio Arena. This venue is located near the Center of Life and is just south of the downtown area. It can seat over eleven thousand people. Other music venues in the city of Newcastle upon Tyne is the Newcastle City Hall, O2 Academy Newcastle, Head of Steam, Trillians Rock Bar, Cumberland Arms and The Cluny.

Newcastle upon Tyne also has many notable hostels, hotels and other lodging accommadations available to visitors of the city. Popular hotels in the city include The Vermont Hotel, Gateshead Hotel, Malmaison Hotel and Quality Hotel Newcastle Upon Tyne. Prominent hostels in the city include YHA Newcastle and Albatross Backpackers.