Month: April 2017

“Be the change you want see in the world“, said Gandhi.
Who was Gandhi? What were his ideas?
Gandhi (Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi) was the leader of the Indian independence during the British colonialism.
He was called Mahatma, which means “high- souled”: this because he changed the destiny of the nation thanks to some great ideas.
His main principles were based on “Self- Determination of People”, “Non- Violence”, “Passive Resistance” and Religious Tolerance”.

 

1. Self- Determination of People. According to Gandhi, the Indians had to decide how to govern their country, because their conditions of misery depended on the power by British colonizers.

 

2. Nonviolence. This concept has not a negative interpretation in terms of political action but it possesses in itself the positive charge of universal benevolence. So it represents the “pure love” that is present in the sacred texts of Hinduism, the Gospel and the Koran.

 

3. Passive resistance. Gandhi refuses violence as a fight strategy.
However, he proposes a strategy that consists in passive resistance, which means to do not react to the provocations of the violent people. In addition he brings the Indians to the civil disobedience, based on the refusal to undergo of unjust laws.

 

4. Religious Tolerance. Gandhi dreamed about the peaceful and respectful coexistence of the many ethnic groups and the freedom of religious professions in India.
This could be an important richness for the country, making it united. Unfortunately, this hope did not work as Gandhi expected.

 

Among his quotes we want to mention this top five:

1. “Intolerance is itself a form of violence and an obstacle to the growth of a true democratic spirit”.

2. “I have nothing new to teach the world. Truth and Non-violence are as old as the hills. All I have done is to try experiments in both on as vast a scale as I could”.

3. “Non-violence is the greatest force at the disposal of mankind. It is mightier than the mightiest weapon of destruction devised by the ingenuity of man”.

4. “Power is of two kinds. One is obtained by the fear of punishment and the other by acts of love. Power based on love is a thousand times more effective and permanent then the one derived from fear of punishment”.

5. “What difference does it make to the dead, the orphans, and the homeless, whether the mad destruction is wrought under the name of totalitarianism or the holy name of liberty or democracy?”.

Iceland is a Nordic island country.
It is situated in the Atlantic Ocean and it has the lowest population density among the countries of Europe.

 

Climate:
The climate is different in the various areas of the island.

Iceland’s winter is not too cold, because of the influence of the Gulf Stream, which touches the island on its south and southwest area. Summers in Iceland are very short and rather cool. Typically on hot days (in July) the temperatures are just over 20 °,  and this is already considered a major heat wave, while at night the temperatures are around 10 ° While, in northwest because of the influence made by the cold winds of Greenland, the climate is therefore much more rigid. Accordingly there is the absence of a real summer. Glaciers occupy more than 10% of the entire country and their extension exceeds the total of glaciers across continental Europe.

The rains, are mostly influenced by the wind direction. The area with the lowest rainfall of the island is located in the north of the huge Vatnajokull glacier.
The other incredible thing is that snowfalls can occur even in early June and late August.
Obviously, because of the weather, Iceland is unsuitable for the agricultural sector.

 

Religion:
According to the Constitution, Icelanders have their religious freedom.
The official religion is Lutheranism, professed according to the National Church of Iceland (named Þjóðkirkjan).

 

Capital:
The capital of Iceland is Reykjavík. Here you can see the 40% of the country population.
Reykjavík is also the main industrial center and it has a port and an airport.
Furthermore, in this city, the quality of life is quite high thanks to a good economic situation.
The other “cities” are mainly situated along the coast. In addition to Reykjavik, also in the south, you can visit the cities of Hafnarfjörður, Kópavogur, Selfoss and Keflavík, which is home to the international airport.
In the western part of Iceland there is the city of Akranes, while in the north you can visit Akureyri and Húsavík. Finally, in the eastern area there is the important center of Egilsstaðir.

 

Food:
The Icelandic cuisine is very simple and it is mainly based on local production.
However, the restaurants are expensive, so you should buy cheaper food in the supermarket. In addition, the majority of the hotels can offer a fully equipped kitchen available for all.

In alternative, there are always hot tables and kiosks of hot dogs which are considered the best ones of the world.

Also important is the steamed food: for cooking Icelanders use the geothermical heat source.
The “hardfiskur“is one of the most famous “snacks” of Iceland, which consists of strips of Haddock (a Nordic fish similar to cod). Fishing, is a relevant economic resource: the variety and quality of the products are very high.
Among their specialties we have to mention the Skyr, which is similar to cheese and yogurt and the “Astarpungur”, which consists of balls of fried dough (very similar to the well-known donuts).

 

Drinks:
Did you know? In Iceland is almost impossible to find bottles of water, even in the supermarket! Why? Because water is potable in the whole country so you can drink it simply through your home sinks.
However, in Iceland is important the production of Coke: in fact, this country is considered one of the main producers of the world.

Also beer is really produced: Thule, Viking and Egils are the three most well-known beer industries.

 

Tourism:
Despite the climate, Iceland has its own importance in the field of tourism, thanks to its enormous glacial and volcanic areas together with its rich and unique cultural heritage.

Do you want to cook a particular type of meatballs?
Let’s try to bake them with mixed vegetables!

Ingredients:
2 potatoes
2 zucchini
200 grams of smoked cheese
2 carrots or lettuce
2 slices of bread
2 eggs
20 g of grated parmesan cheese
1 tablespoon of flour
a pinch of salt
oil
grated bread.

Method:
Boil peel and mash the potatoes
Wash the vegetables (carrots and zucchini), cut them into small pieces and brown them.
Soak the bread slices in a bowl with water.
Combine in a bowl all ingredients and mix them.
How to make the meatballs?
Form the meatballs with your hands and pass them in a dish with grated bread (in this way they will appear more crunchy!)

Store them in the fridge to rest for 30 minutes.
After the half hour pull the balls out of the fridge and cook them on a pan that contains oil and fry them. They will be ready when they seem browner thanks to the colored crust.
There is also an alternative way to cook your meatballs with vegetables: you just have to put them in the oven for 20 minutes (obviously, they have to stay in an apposite container for oven) at 180 degrees.

Serve them and enjoy your meal!

The Everest is the highest mountain of Earth.
Its name is not universal: in fact, it is also known in Nepal as Sagarmāthā and in China as Chomolungma.
However, the name Everest (that is commonly used today) was introduced in 1865 by the General Andrew Waugh in honor of Sir George Everest, who worked for many years as head of British Geographers in India at the service of the British crown.

Main features of Everest:

The Everest has pyramid shape, It is made up of three walls and three crests.

The three walls are:

North Wall (Chinese), which overlooks the Rongbuk glacier;
East wall (Chinese), overlooks the Kangshung glacier;
South West face (Nepal), which overlooks the Khumbu glacier.

While the three crests are:

Northeast crest that divides the north and east walls and start from step Rapiu La (6548 m). It also divides the Rongbuk glacier in two parts: eastern and a western.
Southeast crest, which divides the south-west and east walls and start from the South Col (7906 m) and it joins the Everest with Lhotse (8516 m);
Finally, West crest that divides walls north and southwest and it begins from the step of Lho La (6026 m) which links Everest with Khumbutse (6636 m).

Have you ever been in Edinburgh?

It is the capital of Scotland, representing one of the best tourist destinations.
The city lies on a series of hills. The historical parts of the city and its main castle, have been declared World Heritage by UNESCO in 1995.
The hills of this city are very popular and they are 7: their name are  Arthur’s Seat, Castle Rock, Calton Hill, Corstorphine Hill, Braid Hills, Blackford Hill e Craiglockhard Hill.

Climate:
Edinburgh has an oceanic-temperate climate with temperatures much warmer than other places in the same latitude. Winters are long but not very cold: in fact, the temperatures drop rarely below 0° C.

While, in summer the temperatures are between fresh and warm. They usually reach a maximum of 28 °C. In addition, during this season the weather and the temperatures are very variable because of the wind that often blows in this area of Scotland.

Rainfalls are distributed throughout the year and they are never plentiful: accordingly, Edinburgh is one of the driest cities of Britain.

 

Edinburgh Castle:
It is one of the most well-known attractions of the city.
It stands on an ancient rock of volcanic origin originally called Din Eidyn (the Edyn fortress), who assumed the name of Edinburgh after the invasion of the Angles in 638 A.D.
Today it is visited by over a million tourists a year.
From this building you can admire an amazing view of the city.

What can you see inside the Castle?
In addition to its magnificent medieval structure, inside the Castle you can visit the Hall of Honor, the Royal Jewels, the Royal Palace, the prisons, the National War Museum and the Scottish National War Memorial.
Furthermore you can see the famous ”one o’clock gun”, which is  the cannon shot that every day, except Sunday, has been shot at 13:00 to signal the time to ships that dock at the port. Did you know? This tradition dates back to 1846.

Then, in the royal apartment you can see the Crown Jewels such as the crown and scepter. In the same room you can also see the Stone of Scone, a place in which the Royal Scottish were crowned.

Economy:
The banking sector plays an important role in the city of Edinburgh.
In fact, Edinburgh has become the sixth financial center of Europe thanks to the presence of numerous financial institutions such as the Royal Bank of Scotland, which is the fifth bank in the world or the Standard Life, which is a large cooperative that operates in financial.

Means of Transport:
The main train station is Edinburgh Waverley with houses more than 14 million passengers a year.
However, most city buses are operated by Lothian Buses, which also operates the night service, bus tours and night shuttles to the airport.

Politics:
The Scottish government has its headquarters in St. Andrew’s House placed on Calton Hill and Victoria Quay in Leith. The official residence of the Scottish First Minister is the Bute House in Charlotte Square.
Furthermore, Edinburgh is one of 32 council areas of Scotland and its local authority is represented by the Edinburgh City Council which consists of 58 members elected by the citizens.
The council is headed by the Lord Provost. The elections for the city council are held every four years.

Old Town and New Town:
It is important to underline that the city of Edinburgh is divided into two areas: the Old Town and the New Town.
The Old Town houses many medieval structures and buildings that date back to the Protestant Reformation. They are situated near the main street called Royal Mile.
However, the “Royal Mile” is actually a set of four ways named Castlehill, Lawnmarket, High-Street and Canongate.
In addition, in this area you can visit some important and historical buildings such as the Museum of Scotland, the University of Edinburgh and the Scottish National Library, which is a library that houses about five million books. This is a very important cultural heritage for the city!

While, the New Town The New Town is situated near the famous road “Princes Street” and it was built toward the end of the 18th century.
Among the most popular buildings and attractions of this area we have to mention the National Gallery of Scotland, the Royal Scottish Academy and St. Mary’s Cathedral.

Edinburgh Festivals:
One of the best features of this city is the presence of festivals.
For instance, the “August Festival” attracts every year thousands of visitors who come to participate in music events, international entertainment and international culture, which make colorful the streets of the city for the entire month. However, the Edinburgh festival cultural program of this year includes 11 well-distributed from April to December.
They are named:

1. Edinburgh International Science Festival 1 – April 16, 2017
2. Imagine Children’s Festival: May 27 to June 4 2017
3. Edinburgh Film Festival: 21 June to 2 July 2017
4. Edinburgh Jazz and Blues Festival: July 14 to 23 2017
5. Edinburgh Art Festival: July 27 to August 27 2017
6. Royal Military Tattoo: 4 – August 26, 2017
7. Edinburgh International Festival: 4 – August 28, 2017
8. Edinburgh Fringe Festival: 4 – August 28, 2017
9. Edinburgh Book Festival: 12 to 28 August 2017
10. Edinburgh International Storytelling Festival: 20 – October 31, 2017
11. Edinburgh Hogmanay: December 30, 2017 – January 1, 2018

 

People and Drinks:
The city of Edinburgh is full of entertainment, especially during the weekend.
People are very friendly and they like to spend time with others in restaurants, bars and pubs.
Drinking is a traditional “activity” and there is a large amount of types of beers.
Another important drink of Scotland is the Whisky: about this feature, there are also some festivals dedicated to it during the year.

What about food?
In Edinburgh you can taste various dishes, which are typical of the city but also of the entire Scotland.
Among the most important dishes there are:

Haggis
Black pudding
Stovies
Bridies
Scotch pies
Aberdeenshire butteries
Fish and chips
Scotch broth
Lorne sausage
Cranachan
Dundee cake
Shortbread
Peppermint creams
Scottish wild salmon
Scottish Farmed Salmon
Scotch Lamb
Shetland Lamb

and so on…

So, in conclusion we can say that the city of Edinburgh offers various reasons to be visited. Its traditional cuisine, its cultural places and natural landscape will give you an unforgettable experience.

Tofu is one of the many foods that can be obtained from soy, which is a complete nutrient-rich and highly nutritious plant.
Thanks to these features soy is very diffused in the vegan world. In fact, it can be a good alternative to dairy products and other foods of animal origin.

 

What are its origins?
The origins of Tofu are Chinese, although it is very common in Japan and Korea.
Its nutritional characteristics are really interesting. For instance, it is completely devoid of cholesterol.

 

How can you use the tofu in your recipes?
The mode of use of tofu are the most varied and often, it is a valid substitute to the traditional cheeses.
Let’s discover some good ways to cook tofu:

 

1. Soups: cut into cubes or thin strips, with tofu you can make soups and creamed vegetables more substantial, giving them a delicious taste!

2. Fried: is perhaps the most common ways of cooking, at least in the tradition of Asian cuisines.Browned: generally, the tofu is baked simply browning it in a pan or on the grill, with a little olive oil or sauces, until the surface assumes a slightly brown coloration. This operation is usually chosen to match the derivative of soya to vegetables, both raw and boiled or steamed.

3. Baked: tofu can also be baked, cutting it into slices. After this type of cooking, it tends to assume a more elastic consistency, but it will not melt like regular cheese.

4. Raw: it can be combined with fresh salads, breads, baked goods such as snacks, breadsticks and so on.

5. Snack: Finally, tofu is often used for quick snacks. For instance, It can be combined with oil and bread, becoming the vegan “bruschetta”, but it can also replace the classical cheese in toast and in the hamburger, maintaining its consistency.

The Beatles were an English rock band of Liverpool, which it has been active from 1957 to 1970.
The creation of this band has changedan era in music, costume, fashion and pop art fields.

 

According to reported estimates they have sold worldwide a total of some 600 million copies of albums, singles and cassettes, making them one of the artists most commercial impact until today and, in the United States, those with the greatest number of sales.

 

So they are considerated one of the greatest artists of all time but what is their history? When were they born?

 

Their story has begun in 1957 in the city of Liverpool, when two very young man named John Lennon and Paul McCartney met for the first time on a stage at the Woolton Parish Church, during a rock concert: both of them were guitarists in two different groups of amateurs.
Between them started a friendship intended to produce a huge amount of historical songs. Thus, they decided to improve their poor technique guitar. This became possible also thanks to the new entry George Harrison, a classmate of Paul’s School,
In 1958 the first nucleus of the future Beatles was ready, even if they were called Quarrymen and they propose a strange mixture of skiffle music, which is a “poor” music based on traditional jazz rhythm and blues and rock’n’roll.

 

From this moment, they became famous and nowadays we know that the Beatles were four because of the appearance of another member, Ringo Starr.

In their years of activity they have been officially authors of 186 songs.

 

Several decades away from their official breakup they have been considered a mass phenomenon of global proportions.
Even if now the band has dissolved (because of the death of two components), the Beatles will always remain in our hearts and our souls.