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Mallorca in the Balearic Islands, is an island celebrated for its’ temperate climate and spectacular scenery. The sparkling blue water and pure sandy beaches provide a backdrop for some of the worlds’ most famous fashion photographers. It is the destination of choice for many art directors who wish to create the most exciting print media for magazines and catalogues alike. Year round photographers, models and the accompanying entourage visit the island to participate in the creation of this art.  They take over the five star hotels Mallorca and contribute mightily to the local economy.

Located in the mountains on Mallorca’s north coast Valldemossa, is a village that dates back to the Moorish period of influence. While the homes in the village are representative of traditional Mallorcan architecture, the town itself is mainly characterized by its simplicity. Because the narrow cobblestone streets are closed to vehicles, visitors can walk freely and it is easy to set up and maintain a professional photo shoot. Throughout the island there are architectural backgrounds every bit as enchanting as the hill towns of Italy and France. There are dramatic mountains, ocean views and harbors docking beautiful yachts. There are citrus & almond groves, vineyards and ancient olive trees, all of which make for superb backdrops. Local production companies are available to arrange all permits and permissions for location shooting. There are staff, catering, vehicle rentals, permits, drivers, props, tools etc. available to accommodate the needs of the photography group. In addition it’s also possible to secure the services of professional hair stylists and make-up artists.

Because of the many services and locations available in Mallorca, it is crystal clear that art directors would choose it as the backdrop for the next assignment. The professional local services and thriving commerce of the area help to make the choice an easy decision.

Gallery 76 has a strong focus on promoting contemporary art. It is located in the Dubai International Art Centre and features the work of national as well as international artists. Their mission is to present works in various mediums from established and up-and-coming artists in mixed media, installations, sculpture, photography and painting. Dubai has grown in international interest in recent years and various cultural festivals and events have gained recognition and interest from around the world. Tourists are attracted to its unique offerings and book reservations in advance at a Dubai beach resort.

The Dubai International Art Centre is a diverse and multi-functioning establishment. It was founded in 1976 and has been nurturing the development of new artists since then. It began as a grass roots non-profit start up when a small group of artists including Mary Jose and Caroline Jackson began meeting in a garage to discuss their art and passions. They decided to form an agency and drafted a constitution. The name for the original organization was the Art Society of Dubai. Since then they have grown and re-manifested to become the respected Centre it is today. The Centre has become a major local institution and has a strong attraction for visitors. It is one of the more popular sites to visit for tourists.

Gallery 76 in the Centre first opened its doors in 2005. One of the specific goals of this gallery is to foster the development of Dubai artists, though they also host works from established and internationally known professionals. They have premiered works from artists such as Omayma Soubra, Corbett Miteff, Jan Edwards and Amira Hanna. They have new exhibits each month. Part of their mission is reach broad audiences drawing awareness of the Dubai art scene to an international arena. They are greatly interested in the cultural growth of Dubai and its expression through art.

Rajan Krishnan is an Indian artist born in Kerala, a state in Southwestern India, in 1967. He received his BFA in painting after attaining a BA in economics. He then went on to complete an MFA in painting from Faculty of Fine Arts, M. S. University, Baroda. He now lives and works in Kochi, Kerala and is currently being represented by the Bombay Art Gallery.

His current exhibit at the Bombay Art Gallery is titled simply “Four Paintings.” His intention with the work was to focus on the triumph of memory over oblivion, which is incorporated into the language of each painting. This new collection is a dramatic shift in the direction his painting and artist career. However, he uses the past to explore the present as each painting reflects back on a previous work. His most recent exhibit was “Ore/Substances of Earth” displayed at the Bodhi Space in Mumbai in 2008. This was a substantial multi-media work and consisted of a large terracotta instillation, video and paintings. The new work is more simple and reflects a quiet, contemplative state. Krishnan has been recognized internationally and has also shown in Singapore, New York, and Hong Kong, among many others.

The Bombay Art Gallery was established in 2003. It was conceived with the intention of promoting unique young artists as well as the classical-contemporary blend present in much of India’s art. It has displayed the work of emerging as well as established artists with a focus on approaching a contemporary vision with classically inspired techniques and themes. The primary mediums curated by the gallery are works in painting, sculpture, photography, installation, and drawing. Their mission is to take contemporary Indian art into the International level. They have gained a great deal of respect and recognition locally, and have become a major attraction for visiting tourists. Guests often find information from the concierge of their hospitable Bombay hotel.

Bondi Beach in Australia is now a popular destination for tourists, and surfers. The name comes from the aboriginal language and signifies the surf, as water breaking over the rocks, or the noise that is created when the ocean hits the shore. The beach was made public in the mid to late 1,800′s. The city council tried for years to make this beach in Australia a reserve, therefore limiting the access of it to the public. The beach was finally open to surfers and sunbathers in 1882. Buses had been making regular runs to the beach for about thirty years at that time, and with the opening of the beach to the public, they began to transport those from the outskirts of Sydney. Before that, people had to make their way on foot, or bicycle, or on horseback. Private bus drivers took it upon themselves to provide hourly service between the large city and the beach. The State took control of the transit system in 1933 and within a year there was regulated bus transport to the beach which ran on the hour.

Now, in 2009, the beach has become more popular than ever, with the luxury hotel Australia businessmen and architects have developed over the years in Bondi, travelers and tourists have easy access, however the locals are still trying to find the best and most cost effective ways to get there. There was a tram that ran during the beginning of the 1,900′s between the beach and Sydney, but that was dismantled by 1960. The beach has been becoming increasingly more popular, well–since the ’20′s, which had on some days more than one thousands cars looking for a space to park.
Time limits and fees were introduced in many of the parking lots, and the buses now run throughout the hour. However, most residents are wanting the trams back. And soon, it looks as though Sydney may be required to build a light rail system. This would open up space at the beach, and bring more to it as the aggravation at finding a parking space may contribute to some just choosing to either stay at home or simply to go some where else.

Salvador Dali was born in Spain, the northern village called Figueras. Many years before he would reach the fame and the popularity that now has his paintings hanging in museums and five star Hotels, Spain and his instructors knew that he was destined to it. He started drawing at the age of ten, and it became evident after his first lesson, that he was born with a special gift. Many of his first art teachers were extremely well known artists, one particularly influential was Ramon Pichot. When Dali was 19 years old his father bought him a print machine. Soon afterward Dali entered Madrid’s Royal Academy of Art. He never finished his studies at the academy however. After getting expelled two times, he left without taking the final exams. He stated that those giving the exams were not as qualified as he was, so he quit.

He soon left for Paris, and in 1928 he became friends with fellow painters from Spain, Joan Miro and Pablo Picasso. The collection of these surrealist painters studied and painted along side Andre Breton, a well known figure in the school of Surrealism. Although Dali and Breton spent many months painting together, Breton eventually ended their friendship his reasons being that Dali had become greedy financially, was extremely egotistical, and had fascist political views.

Dali had been studying the works of the old masters for years, particularly fond of the paintings of Rapheal, a Renaissance painter from Italy. He is known for his painterly craftsmanship, even though his subject matter and style is so different, much in the way he lays the paint down on the canvas is due to this study and admiration of the old masters. He soon developed his style that would eventually make him world famous. He based his paintings on the scenes from his dreams, and some of the images are a direct reflection of Sigmund Freud’s psychological theories.

Dali eventually left Europe in order to escape WWII and became a permanent citizen of the United States in 1940. He was well received by the city of Manhattan and the celebrities and the rich and famous of that city. His work continues to be collected and reproduced today, and is just as popular now as it was then.

In 1853, a decision made by the state legislature, changed the history of one city in the United States, which changed the history of the entire country. Central Park is well known and beloved to New Yorkers, who spend days walking, running, pushing baby strollers and keeping up on the legacy of Pale Male. But the allure and the romanticism of this park reaches far across the boundaries of the state lines, for Central Park has become that same romantic idea, for those Americans who have never even been to Manhattan. The movies and the songs and the poems, paintings and books wherein the park is the main character, has given this historical park meaning throughout the states.

Historically, the first constructed and designed public park in the country, is Central Park. Those in favor of creating the park almost 200 years ago, before the hotels New York USA were built, before most of the city was as it is now, the primary land holders and most successful business desired what London had, parks and grounds that provided a bit of nature in the middle of the chaos, a place for those of the city to go that was not a bar nor pub, wherein if one had no money, one could still find peace. And now the park hosts many festivals throughout the year, and concerts, which have gained acclaim and the audience of the entire world. There are boats, paddle-boats shaped as swans and canoes. There are flower gardens, fountains, benches and bridges which serve the people able to walk through the park, but those that live 2,000 miles away. It is the beautiful idea that is also a reality. In the middle of Manhattan today, remains the fruits and the wishes of those so long ago, over 700 acres of open land, protected and forever to remain.

With summer comes long days and fun in the sun, but if your home isn’t prepared for the heat the summertime can be downright hot and dismal. Before the heat rises, take a good look at your home and identify areas that may need remodeling. Being prepared for the heat will make life easier, and cooler, for you during the hottest part of the year.

Fans – Check to be sure your ceiling fans and portable cooling devices are operational. In the early spring, you won’t have to run the air conditioner if you use fans appropriately. If you haven’t considered ceiling fans, late winter or early spring is the best time to start checking out different models and see if there is a good match for you. Installing them as soon as possible will give you the most time to enjoy them during the spring, summer and even the warmer days in the fall.

Air Conditioners – Don’t forget to have the Freon levels in your air conditioner unit checked. Any leaks or damage caused by the winter months should be addressed before you need the A/C in the peak of the summer’s heat.

Doors and Windows – When you get the air conditioning running, you won’t want any of it to slip outside. To keep your home cool, check the seals on your doors and windows to ensure they haven’t been damaged by the winter weather. Also take a look at your window blinds – some shades will actually help keep the heat out and provide additional insulation without sacrificing the amount of natural light that comes into your home. Simply changing the style of blinds may be just the change you need to improve the natural cooling within a room.

Remodeling before things get hot will keep you cool this summer.

In the last few years West African drug smugglers have been recruiting women from Singapore to smuggle drugs to countries overseas. Women are becoming among the many, arrested for the drug runs, as couriers. They enter the foreign countries under the pretext that they are meeting up with friends for a holiday. And the women believe the stories they tell. Persuaded by men from West Africa, who seduced them with the ideas of travel, money and love, more than fifteen women have been arrested for carrying drugs across borders in the last 4 months. Between the years of 2003-2007, only eight were caught. The Central Narcotics Bureau issued a statement warning women against these men promising what they not only can’t deliver, but what they will eventually let them take the fall for. Two women arrested three months ago are facing the death penalty. The syndicates are comprised for the most part, of men between the ages of twenty and thirty. They state during their luxury travel throughout Singapore, that they are successful car salesmen or businessmen. They meet the women in bars and clubs, or via chat lines or love lines on the Internet. They befriend the women and then put their lives at risk. Offered vacations and travel, many of these hardworking women simply don’t say no.

And many do not say no, because of the promise of love and friendship. Or cash. The women are usually asked by their new ‘friends’ or ‘lovers’ to travel from Singapore and pick up a drug stash in a different country. Then they are instructed to fly to a third and final destination. These drug kingpins are smuggling cocaine and heroin. Trouble is that many women eventually get stopped in such airports as those in Great Britain, Australia, China and Japan. One women, arrested in the Melbourne airport was carrying for her ‘boyfriend’ she had met three years prior. He told her that he was in the business of exporting electronic parts. Parts. After he was deported from Singapore back to Nigeria, he set up a ‘vacation’ in Bangkok. He suggested to her to that it was a good idea to swallow sixty four, rubber-wrapped pellets of cocaine and to smuggle them into Melbourne. This woman is now serving jail time, up to ten years of imprisonment. And her ‘lover’ remains at large. No doubt launching more operations on unsuspecting, hard working women of Singapore.