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The year 2013 is on its way out but are we really planning a blast to ring in the New Year? The good news is – Indians are still undeterred by the falling <keyword id="6355302" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="80" keywordseo="Rupee">rupee</keyword> and looking forward to outbound travel in the coming holidays, just like they did this summer. But the way they travel is definitely changing, according to a senior executive of a Delhi-based <keyword id="6607315" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="100" keywordseo="OTA">OTA</keyword>. Overseas travel no longer means the ritual rush through <keyword id="6357117" type="COMPANY" weightage="80" keywordseo="bangkok">Bangkok</keyword> or <keyword id="6356662" type="COUNTRY" weightage="80" keywordseo="Singapore">Singapore</keyword> – the global destinations closest to home and perhaps the least expensive. Of course, these places are not yet marked off the list, but the experienced and the well-heeled seem to have caught the travel bug of a different kind. 
 <keyword id="1960912" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="Offbeat-destinations">Offbeat destinations</keyword> are getting increasingly popular among Indians, says Saurabh Srivastava, vice-president (marketing &amp; product strategy) at ixigo.com, a travel planning site and search engine that aggregates and curates travel information to help consumers. 
 “Of the 2.5 million visitors coming to our site month on month, we see some very clear and emerging trends. While the <keyword id="1960914" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="Regular-overseas-travellers">regular overseas travellers</keyword> are increasingly looking at offbeat destinations to try out something different, first-timers or those who haven’t ventured outside the country too much, are still looking at <keyword id="1960915" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="Popular-destinations">popular destinations</keyword> like Bangkok, Singapore, <keyword id="8695" type="COUNTRY" weightage="80" keywordseo="Malaysia">Malaysia</keyword> and <keyword id="6355478" type="COUNTRY" weightage="80" keywordseo="Australia">Australia</keyword> – the main attractions being <keyword id="6396451" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="beaches">beaches</keyword>, <keyword id="60543" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="Water-sports">water sports</keyword> and <keyword id="6368952" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="100" keywordseo="shopping">shopping</keyword>,” he observes. 
 We have talked to a number of <keyword id="722880" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="travel-agencies">travel agencies</keyword> and rounded up 12 out-of-the-ordinary (but up and coming) places that people are closely following (and booking) these holidays. Here is a quick look at each of them with a glimpse of the local flavour and the basic cost per person on a twin-sharing basis. However, costs are only indicative and are bound to change, depending on your <keyword id="472754" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="Tour-schedule">tour schedule</keyword>, quality of <keyword id="6358762" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="Package">package</keyword>, customisation and service provider. Also, prices may fluctuate as dates get closer. 
 Try planning a holiday if you love these destinations too. Just remember, sometimes, the best travel happens farthest from <keyword id="823132" type="ENTERTAINMENT" weightage="80" keywordseo="home-and-away">home and away</keyword> from your everyday ambience. Catch the sun on a <keyword id="1553372" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="foreign-soil">foreign soil</keyword> this New Year and bon voyage!

Want To Vacation Abroad? These 12 Places Are Creating The
Buzz These Holidays

<ul class="summary-list"><li>Critical Role recently released "Candela Obscura," a gothic horror roleplaying game.</li><li>At the helm of the game's new live-play iteration is main cast member Liam O'Brien.</li></ul>In October, Critical Role, a crew of eight self-professed "nerdy-ass voice actors," played their long-running "Dungeons &amp; Dragons" game at a <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/critical-role-wembley-live-show-nerd-heaven-2023-10">sold-out Wembley Arena</a>.So talking to Liam O'Brien, one of the eight cofounders of Critical Role, feels a lot like sitting across from the nerd world version of a One Direction member. If the gang's regular game master Matthew Mercer is their bright-eyed band leader, think of O'Brien as the brooding, poetic one — the one who writes the sad songs that'll break your heart.These qualities make O'Brien ideal for stepping into the game master role for "Candela Obscura," Critical Role's new gothic horror game, and he's leaning hard into the tragedy."I think I've gotten myself a reputation in our company for being good with the bizarre and the horrific, and I've been looking forward to this," O'Brien said.It's also one of the more punishing gaming systems he's played in, O'Brien told me during our video call. That made for some "pretty brutal, and pretty perfect" moments in-game, he says, especially because he was trying very hard to kill his players — though that hasn't happened in-game. Yet.And while Critical Role's <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/twitch-channel-critical-role-was-top-earning-channel-in-leak-2021-10">1.3 million fans on Twitch</a> have watched them stream their games live for over 1,300 hours, "Candela Obscura" bears little resemblance to "D&amp;D," <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/critical-role-dungeons-dragons-sold-out-live-show-wembley-arena-2023-9">the game that made them nerd-famous</a>.Released in November by the company's publishing arm, Darrington Press, Candela Obscura is set in the Fairelands, a fantasy world similar to post-WWI Europe, with the trappings of eldritch horror, art nouveau, and Victorian-era aesthetics and symbolism. Picture a Victorian "X-Files," or "Ghostbusters" if it was set during the Great Depression.Instead of rolling 20-sided dice and casting reality-bending spells as they would in "D&amp;D," player-characters are far from superhuman. Each adventuring party comprises human investigators trying to solve mysteries and unravel nefarious plots. And every failed gambit results in player-characters taking wounds and racking up scars — with a tragic death awaiting anyone who tangles too long with darkness.O'Brien has spent most of his time in "D&amp;D" games as a player — a budding adventurer on a hero's journey. Mercer, the team's designated game master, is the one who crafts the narrative and controls how the story develops.Now, O'Brien is taking his turn in the game master chair, and getting to unleash his inner chaos gremlin on the cast's Twitch stream."This is just a fun playground to be in," O'Brien said. "With all the games we play, I really like characters that are stuck between a rock and a hard place because it makes interesting things happen."<h2>Make it Victorian</h2>With the "Circle of the Crimson Mirror" — the latest chapter in Critical Role's live-play broadcasts — O'Brien got to wreak some havoc as game master and push his players to the limits of fear.While the main cast of Critical Role usually hangs out around the table in T-shirts and hoodies on Thursday night, the live-action role-play version of "Candela Obscura" looks more like a full-scale theater production. O'Brien's four players — Taliesin Jaffe, Imari Williams, Aimee Carrero, and Alexander Ward — are in full costume.<div type="image" title="An on-set photo of the cast of the latest installment of Critical Role's Candela Obscura — Liam O'Brien, Imari Williams, Taliesin Jaffe, Alexander Ward, and Aimee Carrero." height="900" width="1200" msid="109147615" hostid="261"></div>"This game of 'Candela' is unlike anything I've ever done before because it's so involved," O'Brien told me, crediting the production crew who helped piece the set together. "Everyone is roleplaying as a Victorian at the table, the set, the lighting — it's like weaving magic around us."The first episode of the three-part series on February 29 involved a maritime sojourn to an island that O'Brien says was inspired, in part, by his trips to Ireland.The second episode, which aired on March 28, saw O'Brien drawing on his experience as a young actor in the New York theater circuit, with threads of inspiration ranging from Shakespeare's "Julius Caesar" to the work of the Irish playwright Martin McDonagh."You can find the monstrous both in the literal monstrous in these stories, but also, we're exploring the nature of humanity and our deep, deep flaws — and the things that we will do for power," he added.<div type="image" title="An on-set photo of Critical Role's Liam O'Brien. He's wearing a dark green Cardigan and a striped, button-down shirt." height="810" width="1080" msid="109147616" hostid="261"></div>As for the last installment of the "Crimson Mirror" series scheduled to air on April 25, O'Brien said things are about to get intense."I always prefer complicated narratively satisfying endings to a neat little happy ending," O'Brien told me."I went into this game with a mindset of how I would run it," he added. "But the characters surprised me, and the story we ended up telling is not where I saw things going — and I think it's all the better for it."<h2>The long game</h2>Spenser Starke and Rowan Hall, the lead designers and cowriters of the "Candela Obscura" game at Darrington Press, told me they worked on the rulebook for 11 months, writing the lore and ironing out the game mechanics with multiple rounds of playtesting. Since August, multiple game masters — including Mercer, Starke, and Aabria Iyengar of "Dimension 20" fame — have run their iterations of "Candela Obscura" and helped flesh out the game's background lore."We wanted to make 'Candela Obscura' accessible to pick up for people, from experienced players to those who have never played role-playing games before," Starke said.<div type="image" title="A wide angle shot of the basic and deluxe editions of the &quot;Candela Obscura&quot; core rulebook." height="1499" width="2000" msid="109147618" hostid="261"></div>He said "Candela Obscura" is best described as an investigative paranormal horror game based on simple mechanics. People who want to play the game don't have to memorize "200 pages of lore," he explained."It's designed as a scaffolding rather than an entire metropolis," he told me. "It is a place where you can get the bones of what you need to be able to make the game work for your table, have enough of a foundation that you know where you are, what things look like, and that you can build your play space with your group collaboratively."<div type="image" title="A snapshot of the &quot;Candela Obscura&quot; core rulebook, showing a map of a part of the Fairelands, the world the game is set in." height="1499" width="2000" msid="109147619" hostid="261"></div>Hall, who wrote the mythology and lore for "Candela Obscura," said she thought of the rulebook as an ode to Mary Shelley and "Frankenstein," and their take on a world where regular people can "face the demons of this world, and make a difference.""This game is very unlike games where you're leveling up to God mode," Hall added. "The longer you play, the more likely you are to die. And so it is a story about regular people facing insurmountable odds and choosing to get up and face them again every day."<h2>A different kind of fun</h2>Critical Role is certainly about telling big stories, but it's also about the big gaming business. The company is now a key part of a larger industry where major players like Hasbro's Wizards of the Coast rake in <a target="_blank" href="https://www.wargamer.com/dnd/wizards-of-the-coast-hasbro-revenue-q3-2023">hundreds of millions of dollars in revenue from tabletop gaming</a>.Now, the Critical Role team is angling for a big chunk of that pie, and building <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/critical-role-launches-daggerheart-disruptor-dungeons-and-dragons-2024-3">a gaming and animation business empire that should make Hasbro very afraid</a>.The team is juggling the "Candela Obscura" rollout, an open beta for their new game "Daggerheart," and not one <a target="_blank" href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mUZv9PdfpzE">but two</a> Amazon-backed animated series based on their "D&amp;D" campaigns. The 2019 Kickstarter campaign to create their animated series <a target="_blank" href="https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/criticalrole/critical-role-the-legend-of-vox-machina-animated-s">raised more than $11.3 million</a>, a fundraising run so successful it <a target="_blank" href="https://www.theverge.com/2019/11/6/20952407/amazon-critical-role-animated-show-prime-exclusive-vox-machina-twitch">compelled Amazon to back them</a>.<div type="image" title="The cast of Critical Role" height="1280" width="1920" msid="109147620" hostid="261"></div>I asked O'Brien why he thinks the fan base remains so invested in their work."At the start of CR, we just gave a very simple way for many people to see how much fun sitting at a table and playing 'Dungeons and Dragons' is," he said.But there are so many ways of enjoying games, not just "the Critical Role way," he added. And what his crew wants to continue doing is to "make things that we love, in the hopes that other people will love it.""We're using some of our own systems now," he said. "And we're showing people a different kind of fun."

Critical Role's heartbreak prince helped make 'Dungeons & Dragons' cool. Now he's coming for the gothic horror gaming scene.

<ul class="summary-list"><li>In 2022, I officially moved to Vienna, the world's most liveable city. </li><li>Vienna is more affordable than <a href="https://www.insider.com/surprising-things-living-in-florida-from-new-yorker-2023-7">New York City</a> and my Florida hometown, and it's beautiful. </li></ul>Burned out, stressed out, and laid off in New York City, I could feel it was my time to leave. After making the decision to go full-time freelance, I also knew it was now or never to fulfill my <a href="https://www.insider.com/surprising-things-about-moving-to-europe-from-us-barcelona-spain">dream of living in Europe</a>. Fast forward to 2021, when that dream finally took flight. I tried living in a few cities that first year (Lisbon, Warsaw, Amsterdam, Gdańsk, Nice, to name a few), but something was always missing. I couldn't name it, but I could feel it.It wasn't until after my first week of living in Vienna that I had a name for what I'd been lacking: belonging. I'd always sought belonging in people, places, and jobs, but it remained elusive, always slipping from my fingers. But Vienna felt different, as if its way of life filled in all of my gaps and invited me to grow from scratch.More than that, I felt as if the city opened its arms and, <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wccRif2DaGs" target="_blank" rel="noopener">as Billy Joel sang</a>, was waiting for me. In March 2022, I officially moved to Vienna with my cat, Oliver.Since then, we've had the pleasure of belonging to <a href="https://www.eiu.com/n/campaigns/global-liveability-index-2023/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">the world's most liveable city</a> — a title Vienna was crowned with in July 2023 that it's held multiple times before. The award was given, in part, for the city's stability, healthcare and education systems, and other factors. And in our time here, I've gotten to learn why Vienna is so wonderful.<h2>I'm constantly finding new reasons to love this city</h2><h2><div type="image" title="Maria Theresa Platz, an old building with flowers outside of it" height="1080" width="1440" msid="103869666" hostid="261"></div></h2>Vienna seems to have an infinite array of cultural experiences, as varied as museums, concerts, and festivals. I love the many buildings with their grandeur and Baroque or Art Nouveau details.I love the clean streets, hundreds of cafés, beautiful vineyards, and all of the green space that covers <a href="https://www.wien.gv.at/english/environment/parks/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">half of the Vienna area</a>.I'm also regularly impressed by the city's public-transit system that seamlessly moves people around the city via buses, trains, trams, and underground lines.<h2><div type="image" title="A large building in front of water at night" height="2274" width="3024" msid="103869667" hostid="261"></div></h2>The relaxed city comes fully alive in the summer and the <a href="https://www.insider.com/best-states-to-visit-in-winter-season-us">winter</a>, too. Don't get me started on the famous Christmas markets — they're my favorite.I often find myself walking around the city, smiling at nothing and everything.<h2>The pace and price of living here makes it even better</h2><h2><div type="image" title="Sonya Matejko and her cat snuggled together on a couch" height="1741" width="2316" msid="103869670" hostid="261"></div></h2>Fortunately, the city is also <a href="https://www.insider.com/american-moving-to-europe-cheaper-than-us-summer-camp-2023-7">far more affordable</a> than where I've lived before. I've seen studio apartments in Vienna available for well under 1,000 euros, about $1,070. My rent in New York City was close to double that amount for one bedroom in a shared space. Overall, I've found the cost of living for me is lower here than it was in my hometown in Florida, too. Beyond affordability, it's Vienna's pace that I love the most. I no longer feel like I'm in a rush all of the time, and I feel and see an ease in the city that makes existing in it, well, easy.And, <a href="https://www.insider.com/expat-moved-from-uk-vienna-masters-hated-it-2023-7">contrary to what I hear from some ex-pats</a>, I've found it easy to make friends and build my community here using Facebook groups such as <a href="https://www.facebook.com/groups/188796762527090" target="_blank" rel="noopener">International Women of Vienna</a>, going to coworking spaces, and even joining local yoga studios.<h2>I've still got a lot to learn, but I enjoy being a student here</h2><h2><div type="image" title="Sonya Matejko and a friend on a ride in Vienna smiling" height="3024" width="4032" msid="103869672" hostid="261"></div></h2>As I continue learning more and getting involved with my community, I'm figuring out who I will become. I'll keep learning Austria's official language, German, as I think it's vital (and respectful) to ingrain yourself into a city by learning the local language. For now, I can get by when ordering coffee and <a href="https://www.insider.com/what-its-like-flying-plane-for-groceries-alaska-living-2022-11">buying groceries</a>.I always appreciate the polite smiles as I do my best with new German words and phrases, and think it's kind when people switch to English when I get beyond what I've memorized. People here often tell me I'm in my honeymoon phase with Vienna, but I think they're mistaken. I like who I am here, and I'm committed to her and this beautiful city.

I left the US and moved to Vienna, the world's most liveable city, a year ago. It's been incredible and I don't want to leave.

<ul class="summary-list"><li>The son of a wealthy plantation owner built a home in <keyword id="6355572" type="LOCATION" weightage="60" keywordseo="sri-lanka">Sri Lanka</keyword> in 1912 to woo his bride.</li><li>In 2011, four friends bought the crumbling remains of the once grand villa for $430,000.</li><li>After extensive renovations, they now rent the mansion out to guests for $1,300 a night.</li></ul>It was in 2010 when the interior designer Dean Sharpe first glimpsed the crumbling mansion on the Sri Lankan hillside near the town of Weligama. In its glory days, Halala Kanda - known as Firefly Hill to locals - played host to guests such as Ethiopian Emperor Haile Selassie and the legendary Australian cricketer Keith Miller. The son of a wealthy plantation owner built the mansion in 1912 to woo his bride.But when Sharpe first saw it, the tired relic with its crumbling plaster looked as if it had been lost to the jungle. The coral and stone walls had collapsed, bats were roosting in the rafters, the windows were boarded up, and a tree was growing through the roof of the entryway."It was a ruin of what it once was," Sharpe told Insider. "But we walked in and fell in love with it."In 2011, he bought the crumbling, 100-year-old villa and two acres of land for $430,000 along with his friends Jenny Lewis, Richard Bleasdale, and Bentley de Beyer.Sharpe was tasked with creating the look of the villa, which wrapped around an open-air courtyard. The group commissioned the architect Ross Logie to bring their dreams to reality.Work began in December 2012, a full 100 years after the structure was built. "We wanted it to look as authentic as possible," Sharpe said. "But we didn't want to create a pastiche of what went before."<div type="image" title="the facade before renovation" height="1050" width="1400" msid="84609305" hostid="261"></div><h2>Maintaining the bones</h2>Because the friends wanted to keep as much of the original building as possible, they considered every piece of the home carefully before scrapping it: "We didn't do a big bonfire and burn everything," Sharpe said. "Each window frame and roof joist was carefully removed and stacked."There were certain parts of the villa they couldn't hold onto. The grand entrance was crumbling, and the tiled roof of the kitchen wing had caved in. Termites had attacked the plaster, which meant the builders had to scrape the walls back to the original coral and stone structure."The demolition took four months to complete," Sharpe said. "The builders were concerned as they needed to get the tarpaulin on the roof to protect it from the monsoon season." He declined to share how much they spent on renovating the property.Sharpe replaced the roof with white corrugated iron to reflect the heat and give the home a contemporary look. It also helped monkey-proof the roof: "The tiles had been replaced in the 1950s, so they weren't turn of the century," Sharpe said. "We needed to protect it, as it's a bit of a monkey freeway."<div type="image" title="Exterior of the renovated Sri Lanka home shows an all-white finish" height="970" width="1293" msid="84609306" hostid="261"></div><h2>Modern additions</h2>Previously, the well in the garden had been the villa's only source of water, but the friends arranged for it to be connected to the local mains. They also installed air conditioning, plumbing, and electrical systems. By 2014, the house was in livable condition, though work was ongoing.Logie's plans for the house followed the original footprint of the house, but they made the internal rooms more functional. Logie created sight lines in the house that gave every room a vista. He also installed a 23-meter-long saltwater pool in the garden, an art nouveau-style folly, and built staff quarters into the hillside.Logie told Insider the biggest challenge was ensuring the qualities of the original were not lost through renovations."I think we achieved this goal by matching the spirit of the existing villa with harmonious, yet contemporary, additions," he said. "For example, the swimming pool and pool pavilion are clearly designed for modern living, yet the pool pavilion shares a fluid style of early-20th-century art nouveau."<div type="image" title="a view of the home including the pool" height="2662" width="3550" msid="84609307" hostid="261"></div><h2>Surprises at every turn</h2>"When we cut back the jungle undergrowth we found a cashew grove, mango orchard, and coconut trees," Sharpe said. "It was like we'd discovered a secret garden." The friends also planted coffee and tea bushes, pineapple and citrus groves, and pepper and cinnamon vines.In the 1950s, the mansion featured pastel-colored walls, but Sharpe decided to let the architecture shine with a simple monochrome theme. He chose not to paint over the wooden rafters, as was fashionable before, instead leaving them bare so the artistry could be on display.When it came to decorating, Sharpe scoured the Sri Lankan countryside for antiques and had others made by local artisans. He commissioned a carpenter who had recently returned from working on hotels in Abu Dhabi, the capital of the United Arab Emirates, to make the sofas and four-poster beds for the mansion.<div type="image" title="interior shot of the home featuring sculpture" height="4021" width="2681" msid="84609308" hostid="261"></div>The antique-sourcing trips gave rise to the Room of Curiosities next to the entrance of the house. "It features buys we've collected and items that people have left for us," Sharpe said. "The idea is that it gets added to. Curios include a hexagonal wood table inlaid with tropical woods found in Sri Lanka, as well as chess sets, street puppets, and books."The Room of Curiosities is my favorite place in the house. I like to sit and read or listen to music and hear the buzz of the house - from the people in the pool, to the clatter in the kitchen."The friends now rent the villa to guests for $1,300 a night. The TV host Jaala Dyer from New Zealand rented the villa in 2018 with friends from Singapore."Every now and again you stumble onto something truly special. That's the perfect way to describe Halala Kanda," Dyer told Insider. "It's architecturally interesting and luxurious, without being clinical and stark. Everywhere you sit in the house just feels right."While the coronavirus pandemic put a stop to <keyword id="6356001" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="international">international</keyword> tourism, families from Sri Lanka were able to enjoy the villa. The sustainable tea plantation on the property also helped cover some of the costs of keeping the villa running.While they still want to make changes to the house, such as creating a new family suite, it has already given them a lot of pleasure, Sharpe said. Even before they finished the <keyword id="69178" type="PERSON" weightage="60" keywordseo="renovation">renovation</keyword>, it played host to de Beyer's 40th birthday party. "There have been lots of wonderful little moments," Sharpe said.<div type="image" title="steps lead to the home's entrance" height="1991" width="2650" msid="84609466" hostid="261"></div>Editor's note: If you're an APAC-based freelancer who wants to write stories like this one about <keyword id="6354553" type="COMPANY" weightage="60" keywordseo="real-estate">real estate</keyword> and design, email me your pitches at lbatarags@insider.com.

4 friends bought a crumbling, 100-year-old mansion in the Sri Lankan jungle for $430,000 and spent years restoring it. Take a look inside.

<ul class="summary-list"><li><keyword id="11895112" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="barcelona" source="Orion">Barcelona</keyword> has a wealth of cultural and historical sites that draw millions of visitors each year.</li><li>Here are some ways to escape the tourist crowds and discover a more authentic side of the city.</li></ul>Barcelona is jam-packed with attractions, from incredible architecture to world-class museums, lively markets, and fabulous urban beaches. Even exploring the warren of narrow streets and pocket squares of the medieval old city can take a whole afternoon. But as beautiful as my adopted home city is, it also suffers from over-tourism. In 2019, prior to the pandemic, this city of <a href="https://time.com/6072062/barcelona-tourism-residents-covid/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener sponsored">1.6 million people saw nearly 12 million tourists</a> visit, plus many day-trippers arriving by cruise ship. Remarkable Gaudí landmarks — Sagrada Familia, Park Güell — and top sites like the Picasso Museum have become perpetually packed with tourists, especially in the summer high season.Fortunately, there are ways to support responsible tourism and avoid major crowds. I've lived in Barcelona for five years, and the key to enjoying your time is to balance visits to major attractions with stops at lesser-known cultural sites and venture a bit farther from the center to discover local neighborhoods. Poblenou, for one, has trendy bars and restaurants, plus some of Barcelona's best beaches.If you put some of my suggestions below onto your list of must-dos, I guarantee you will have a far more pleasant trip with fewer crowds, while also seeing a more authentic side of the city. <div type="image" title="A beige and white cathedral with a gate and trees surrounding the entrance" height="3840" width="5119" msid="91104446" hostid="261"></div>Sant Pau Recinto ModernistaA 10-minute stroll uphill from Gaudí's celebrated Sagrada Familia is the <a href="https://www.santpaubarcelona.org/en" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener sponsored">world's largest Art Nouveau site</a>. Designed by Catalan architect Lluís Domènech i Montaner and completed in 1930, this former hospital complex stretches across nine city blocks and is made up of dozens of red-brick pavilions surrounding landscaped courtyards. Since the complex is so large, it rarely gets crowded, so you can take your time wandering around and admiring the buildings' wealth of ornamental details, including colorful mosaic tiles, elaborate ceiling frescoes, and stained-glass windows. The highlight for me is the main administration pavilion with a grand marble staircase leading to hallways lined in multicolored stained glass — it's a very Instagrammable spot.<div type="image" title="People in a museum with gray walls. Two people look at painted and children are visible through an asymmetrical archway with mirrors on side" height="3840" width="5119" msid="91104448" hostid="261"></div>CaixaForum BarcelonaThere's always something interesting going on at <a href="https://caixaforum.org/es/barcelona" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener sponsored">this arts center</a> set at the foot of Montjuïc, just across from the National Museum of Catalonian Art. Traveling exhibitions put on by La Caixa Foundation run the gamut and are well-curated. I've seen retrospectives of Magritte and Warhol, the furniture designs of Jean Prouvé, and themed shows from opera to vampires. It's also free to visit the building, a former textile factory, and a beautiful example of industrial Modernisme architecture. I always make it a point to go up to the roof terrace for views of the sprawling red-brick complex and its crenelated roofs, turrets, and filigreed towers. <div type="image" title="A view of the Barcelona city behind an abstract statue shaped like a fork in a small pond and a woman standing next to it" height="3840" width="5119" msid="91104449" hostid="261"></div>Fundació Joan MiróArchitect Josep Sert designed <a href="https://www.fmirobcn.org/en/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener sponsored">this gleaming all-white museum</a> atop Montjuïc to house the surrealist artwork of Joan Miró, a Barcelona native and one of the most celebrated 20th-century artists. Miró's bold, bright, abstract pieces, including paintings, drawings, sculptures, and textiles from all periods of his life, are perfectly at home in the spare, light-filled space. My favorite spot is the rooftop, where his colorful, whimsical sculptures are set against jaw-dropping views of the city. <div type="image" title="Two girls sit on a stone path with view of Barcelona downhill below them" height="3840" width="5119" msid="91104656" hostid="261"></div>Turó de la Rovira/Bunkers of CarmelWhen I want to show visitors the best views of Barcelona, I take them up to <a href="https://www.barcelona.cat/museuhistoria/ca/patrimonis/els-espais-del-muhba/muhba-turo-de-la-rovira" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener sponsored">these hilltop bunkers</a> located 900 feet above the city. From here, you have panoramic vistas of the mountains, sea, and the whole of Barcelona spread out below. It's a favorite weekend picnic spot for locals, but history buffs can study the plaques dotted around the site to learn how these bunkers helped defend the city from air attacks during the Spanish Civil War. Buses 22 and 24 run from Plaça de Catalunya to El Carmel, and from there it's about a 10-minute walk uphill to the site.<div type="image" title="Pieces of wall and clay inside of exhibit with a pathway and a person standing next to it" height="3840" width="5119" msid="91104660" hostid="261"></div>Barcelona History Museum (MUHBA Plaça del Rei) Most visitors focus on Barcelona's medieval architecture or the works of Gaudí, but the city actually dates back more than 2,000 years, when it was a Roman colony called Barcino. I love showing people its lesser-known ancient history, with a visit to <a href="https://www.barcelona.cat/museuhistoria/en/heritages/els-espais-del-muhba/muhba-placa-de-rei" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener sponsored">this mostly underground museum</a> located deep beneath the Gothic Quarter's Plaça del Rei. Walkways stretch over the excavated Roman streets, which reveal the commercial life of the city from the first century BC, including a winery (with giant terra-cotta vats), a fish-salting factory, and a laundry area. As you go up, each level reveals a different era; for example, you can see the remains of the city's first Christian community dating from the fourth to the seventh centuries, and the formation of the medieval city in the 13th century. It's an absolutely fascinating exploration of ancient Barcelona.<div type="image" title="A walkway with a white railing and beach with people lounging and swimming in the ocean in background" height="3840" width="5119" msid="91104665" hostid="261"></div>Poblenou BeachesInstead of fighting for a little wedge of sand on the crowded beaches of Barceloneta, do as the locals do and head east to strands of the Poblenou district. The beaches of Bogatell, Mar Bella, and Nova Mar Bella tend to be less crowded than those closer to the city center, and the atmosphere is far more relaxed, with fewer drunk, rowdy tourists. (Do keep in mind that one section of Mar Bella is a gay nudist beach.) You'll find all the same amenities as in Barceloneta, including chiringuitos (beach bars), sand volleyball courts, lifeguards, and most importantly, toilets and outdoor showers. After a few hours at Bogatell, I like to make my way to the neighboring Parc del Poblenou for a pit stop at the hip al fresco eatery <a href="https://campingcamping.onuniverse.com/home" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener sponsored">Camping</a>, which serves excellent snacks and sandwiches, and organic drinks. <div type="image" title="A variety of whole raw shrimp, raw fish, and prawns on ice on a table and in baskets at market" height="3840" width="5119" msid="91104670" hostid="261"></div>Mercat de Sant Antoni (Sant Antoni Market)Tourists swarm the stalls of the famous La Boqueria market on the Rambla, but very few locals actually do their shopping there. For a more authentic market experience — in a building that's even more beautiful, in my opinion — stop by <a href="https://www.mercatdesantantoni.com/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener sponsored">this vast indoor market</a>, occupying an entire block in the Sant Antoni district. Inside an elegant iron structure that dates back to 1882 is just about everything a foodie could want, like fresh produce, seafood, meat, cheese, bread, Spanish olives, olive oil, and wine. And of course, there are multiple stalls where you can watch vendors expertly slicing a leg of Iberian ham. I don't cook but I love coming to this market to soak in the atmosphere (and pick up some lovely local cheeses and wines). On Sundays, while the interior is closed, a market of secondhand books sets up shop on the periphery. <div type="image" title="Many people seated in red chairs and wire frame tables and chairs under yellow umbrellas beside apartment homes under large trees" height="3840" width="5119" msid="91104672" hostid="261"></div>Plazas of Gràcia One of my favorite pastimes is going café-hopping among Gràcia's pedestrian plazas (or plaças in Catalan). This district to the north of the city center was once a separate village and it counts around 15 squares — shady spots where residents come to mingle and catch up over coffee, wine, or vermouth. My top three picks are Plaça de Virreina, Plaça de la Rovira i Trias, and Plaça de la Vila de Gràcia — all within a short stroll of one another. Virreina, framed by elegant residential buildings and tall trees and anchored by the 19th-century stone church of Sant Joan de Gràcia, is a wonderfully peaceful spot. There are several cafés in the plaza, and a couple more alongside the church, so you can usually find a table if you're patient.Nearby is Rovira, which has some of the better dining and drinking options, including La Rovira, which specializes in local beers and good pub-style food. One of the largest, liveliest squares is Vila de Gràcia, marked by a tall clock tower at its center. Families love to gather here and let kids run freely around the plaza. If you're lucky, you'll find a seat on the terrace of <a href="http://nabuccotiramisu.com/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener sponsored">Nabucco Tiramisu</a>, which serves excellent Italian coffee and pastries.<div type="image" title="Three bronze statues of Spanish figures on a display with a red background" height="3840" width="5119" msid="91104677" hostid="261"></div>Museu Frederic Marès Adjacent to the Barcelona Cathedral is <a href="https://www.barcelona.cat/museufredericmares/eng/museum" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener sponsored">this fascinating museum</a> holding the eclectic collections of sculptor Frederic Marès (1893–1991). Skip the lower levels with their seemingly endless parade of medieval-era Madonnas and Jesuses, and make a beeline for the marvelous Collector's Cabinet on the top floors. Here, you'll find 17 themed rooms packed with hundreds, if not thousands, of examples of whatever struck Marès's fancy — everything from medieval armor to walking sticks to ladies' fans and pipes and cigarette cases. Pouring through the matchbook collection alone could take hours.I love perusing the many wonderfully weird items, like Victorian-era needlepoint portraits crafted from human hair and a whole section of bouquet holders, carried by the most fashionable 19th-century European ladies.<div type="image" title="A woman holds her phone and takes a picture of many multi-colored lights in a room illuminated in purple and green" height="3840" width="5119" msid="91104679" hostid="261"></div>Moco Museum BarcelonaWhen I lived in Amsterdam, I regularly visited this museum focusing on contemporary and street art, so I was excited when <a href="https://mocomuseum.com/moco-museum-barcelona-en/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener sponsored">the new outpost opened in Barcelona</a> last October. Set in a 16th-century palace in El Born, just a stone's throw from the Picasso Museum, it displays a small but stellar collection of works across two levels.Downstairs are modern and contemporary masters like Andy Warhol, Jean-Michel Basquiat, and Julian Opie, while upstairs features pieces from street artists like Kaws and Banksy. Several rooms are dedicated to experiential and digital art, including an awesome immersive light-and-mirror installation by Studio Irma. And this is one museum where you won't want to skip the gift shop filled with cool prints, postcards, tote bags, T-shirts, and limited-edition merch. <div type="image" title="Casa Batllo in Barcelona, Spain lit up at night." height="2391" width="3188" msid="91104681" hostid="261"></div>Magic Nights at Casa BatllóI'd always avoided visiting <a href="https://www.casabatllo.es/en/online-tickets/visit-magic-nights/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener sponsored">this masterpiece of Gaudí</a>, chiefly because of the long lines no matter the season. But then I discovered Magic Nights. Instead of queuing up with the daytime crowds, you can spend a bit more than the regular 35 euros admission for an intimate evening that also includes a live rooftop concert — plus free cava!Doors open to Magic Nights ticket holders at 8 p.m. for a tour of the house (with a free audio guide), followed by the concert starting at 9 p.m. There are three ticket levels — blue, silver, and gold — with the latter (priced at 59 euros) netting you a front-row table to the concert, plus an extra drink. But the blue tickets (49 euros) also give you the full experience, including a visit to the new Gaudí Cube, a spectacular immersive video-and-sound installation in the basement. What really makes it worth the extra cost is seeing the house without the throngs of tourists — there are times that I had the rooms nearly all to myself. Magic Nights runs seasonally, from April to November.<a href="https://www.insider.com/everything-you-need-to-know-about-traveling-to-barcelona-spain" target="_blank" rel="noopener">View Insider's comprehensive guide to visiting Barcelona.</a>

10 places to go in Barcelona beyond what you'll find in most guide books, according to a local travel writer

<div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"><a href="http://pbteen.8f6i.net/c/196318/267852/4334?subId1=biipf_090319_fantastic-beasts-pottery-barn&amp;u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.pbteen.com%2Fshop%2Fnew%2Ffantastic-beasts-shop%2F%3Fsearchredir%3Dtrue%26cm_sp%3DHeaderLinks-_-OnsiteSearch-_-MainSite%26cm_type%3DOnsiteSearch%26term%3Dfantastic%2520beasts%26searchredirtype%3Dbr%26isx%3D0.0.3695" target="_blank" rel="noopener"></a>Pottery Barn</div></div></div><ul class="summary-list"><li>Harry Potter fans will want to check out the new <a href="http://pbteen.8f6i.net/c/196318/267852/4334?subId1=biipf_090319_fantastic-beasts-pottery-barn&amp;u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.pbteen.com%2Fshop%2Fnew%2Ffantastic-beasts-shop%2F%3Fsearchredir%3Dtrue%26cm_sp%3DHeaderLinks-_-OnsiteSearch-_-MainSite%26cm_type%3DOnsiteSearch%26term%3Dfantastic%2520beasts%26searchredirtype%3Dbr%26isx%3D0.0.3695" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Fantastic Beasts line available from Pottery Barn Teen</a>.</li><li>While these items are meant for the teen set, there are many items that adults will love. </li><li> This eclectic collection really does bring a bit of magic in your home. </li><li> From a <a href="http://pbteen.8f6i.net/c/196318/267852/4334?subId1=biipf_090319_fantastic-beasts-pottery-barn&amp;u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.pbteen.com%2Fproducts%2Fwizarding-world-nagini-mirror%2F%3Fpkey%3Dcfantastic-beasts-shop%26isx%3D0.0.3835" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Nagini Mirror ($299)</a> to a <a href="http://pbteen.8f6i.net/c/196318/267852/4334?subId1=biipf_090319_fantastic-beasts-pottery-barn&amp;u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.pbteen.com%2Fproducts%2Ffantastic-beast-niffler-critter-beanbag%2F%3Fpkey%3Dcfantastic-beasts-shop%26isx%3D0.0.3238" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Niffler Critter Beanbag ($179 to $308)</a>, there's a wide array of options for every age. </li></ul>One of the aspects that I find irresistible about the Harry Potter franchise is the whimsical and, of course, magical art direction of the films. This Wizarding World that the filmmakers created, and as seen on the big screen, possesses a charm that is delightfully unique to the franchise. While the first Harry Potter movies are stylistically steeped in school days, the "Fantastic Beasts" films are far more sophisticated in spirit. This brand new <a href="http://pbteen.8f6i.net/c/196318/267852/4334?subId1=biipf_090319_fantastic-beasts-pottery-barn&amp;u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.pbteen.com%2Fshop%2Fnew%2Ffantastic-beasts-shop%2F%3Fsearchredir%3Dtrue%26cm_sp%3DHeaderLinks-_-OnsiteSearch-_-MainSite%26cm_type%3DOnsiteSearch%26term%3Dfantastic%2520beasts%26searchredirtype%3Dbr%26isx%3D0.0.3695" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Fantastic Beasts collection by Pottery Barn Teen</a> pays homage to the Harry Potter prequels in subtle and stunning ways.<a href="http://pbteen.8f6i.net/c/196318/267852/4334?subId1=biipf_090319_fantastic-beasts-pottery-barn&amp;u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.pbteen.com%2Fshop%2Fnew%2Ffantastic-beasts-shop%2F%3Fsearchredir%3Dtrue%26cm_sp%3DHeaderLinks-_-OnsiteSearch-_-MainSite%26cm_type%3DOnsiteSearch%26term%3Dfantastic%2520beasts%26searchredirtype%3Dbr%26isx%3D0.0.3695" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The Fantastic Beasts line</a> is inspired, as was the movie, by art nouveau, art deco, and 1920s New York City. Think Erte, the Chrysler Building, and glamorous flappers mixed in with a healthy dose of a wizardly aesthetic. There are snake mirrors, phoenix lamps, magic wand pillows, Elder Wand bedding, velvet robes, and cozy throws - all embodying old-school glamour. I, for one, love a whimsical touch when it comes to home decor and have set my sights on ordering the <a href="http://pbteen.8f6i.net/c/196318/267852/4334?subId1=biipf_090319_fantastic-beasts-pottery-barn&amp;u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.pbteen.com%2Fproducts%2Fwizarding-world-nagini-mirror%2F%3Fpkey%3Dcfantastic-beasts-shop%26isx%3D0.0.3835" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Wizarding World Nagini Mirror</a> and the <a href="http://pbteen.8f6i.net/c/196318/267852/4334?subId1=biipf_090319_fantastic-beasts-pottery-barn&amp;u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.pbteen.com%2Fproducts%2Ffantastic-beasts-magical-spells-table-lamp%2F%3Fcm_src%3DPIPRecentView" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Magical Spells Table Lamp</a>. And I'm far from my teen years, proving that Pottery Barn's younger offerings aren't only for those under the age of 18. If you'd like to shop a more adult line, they've also released a new Harry Potter collection for entertaining over at <a href="http://pottery-barn.o3ae.net/c/196318/267848/4332?subId1=biipf_090319_fantastic-beasts-pottery-barn&amp;u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.potterybarn.com%2Fshop%2Fdinnerware-entertaining%2Fharry-potter-shop%2F" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Pottery Barn</a> that includes <a href="http://pottery-barn.o3ae.net/c/196318/267848/4332?subId1=biipf_090319_fantastic-beasts-pottery-barn&amp;u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.potterybarn.com%2Fproducts%2Fharry-potter-filled-pillow-cover%2F%3Fpkey%3Dcharry-potter-shop%26isx%3D0.0.696" target="_blank" rel="noopener">pillows</a>, <a href="http://pottery-barn.o3ae.net/c/196318/267848/4332?subId1=biipf_090319_fantastic-beasts-pottery-barn&amp;u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.potterybarn.com%2Fproducts%2Fharry-potter-hogwarts-house-napkins%2F%3Fpkey%3Dcharry-potter-shop%26isx%3D0.0.2794" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Hogwarts napkins</a>, and a very cool <a href="http://pottery-barn.o3ae.net/c/196318/267848/4332?subId1=biipf_090319_fantastic-beasts-pottery-barn&amp;u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.potterybarn.com%2Fproducts%2Fharry-potter-floating-candle%2F%3Fpkey%3Dcharry-potter-shop%26isx%3D0.0.668" target="_blank" rel="noopener">floating candle</a>. <h3>In the meantime, take a peek at 10 of our favorite pieces from Pottery Barn Teen's new Fantastic Beasts collection:</h3><a href="http://e.businessinsider.com/join/ci/insider-picks">Subscribe to our newsletter.</a> Find all the best offers at our <a href="https://coupons.businessinsider.com/">Coupons page</a>. Disclosure: This post is brought to you by the <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/insiderpicks">Insider Picks</a> team. We highlight products and services you might find interesting. If you buy them, we get a small share of the revenue from the sale from our commerce partners. We frequently receive products free of charge from manufacturers to test. This does not drive our decision as to whether or not a product is featured or recommended. We operate independently from our advertising sales team. We welcome your feedback. Email us at insiderpicks@businessinsider.com.

Pottery Barn Teen's Fantastic Beasts Collection features decor and bedding that 'Harry Potter' fans of any age will love

On board the mobile command that's keeping Ukraine's trains running

<div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table float_right"><div><div class="image on-image">AP Photo/Alik KepliczThe Palace of Culture and Science is lit up next to the modern high-rise "sail" skyscraper by U.S. architect Daniel Liebeskind.</div></div></div>In the heart of downtown Warsaw stands a "gift" from former Soviet dictator Joseph Stalin: the <a href="http://warsawtour.pl/en/tourist-attractions/palace-of-culture-and-science-pa-ac-kultury-i-nauki-2036.html">Palace of Culture of Science</a>, the tallest building in the country.Communism fell in Poland in 1989. But the Palace remains more than 60 years after its construction, despite persistent calls <a href="http://inside-poland.com/t/call-to-demolish-warsaws-palace-of-culture-as-an-architectural-monstrosity-and-affront-to-poland/">to tear it down</a>. Much of the truly negative sentiment toward the building has dissipated over the last several decades, but it continues to strike a chord with many Poles, especially the older generation that lived under Soviet rule.One taxi driver I met called the building "<a href="http://lotr.wikia.com/wiki/Barad-d%C3%BBr" target="_blank">Sauron's Tower</a>." And a running joke among Poles calls the "trzydziestka," a large terrace on the building's 30th floor, the best view of the city - because it's the only place where you can't see the Palace itself. Aside from complaints about the aesthetic, the building's true irony is that it wasn't a gift at all. And it wasn't <a href="http://bigstory.ap.org/article/bf8fdb7b80404c2497f77ebe1f599adc/unwanted-gift-stalin-warsaw-palace-culture-turns-60">wanted</a>. "Stalin wanted to build in Warsaw a monument to himself and a symbol of the USSR's control of Poland," Marta Hankiewicz, a tour guide with the city, told Business Insider. "The PR around the construction said that [the Palace] was a gift of friendship from the USSR and theoretically, all costs were covered. However, if you look at the reality of the Polish economy following World War II, it can be said that Poland paid for it." And to make room for the building, Stalin further destroyed a city already in ruins. After World War II, nearly 70% of Warsaw as a whole (on both sides of Vistula River) was destroyed.The Warsaw Uprising, one of the largest resistance operations in Europe, infuriated the German regime, leading them to institute what's now referred to as the "planned destruction of Warsaw" in 1944. The powerful Nazi leader Heinrich Himmler uttered his infamous quote, "No stone can remain standing," about the city in the wake of the Uprising.<div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image">Wikimedia CommonsThe Palace is a noticeable feature of Warsaw's skyline.</div></div></div>The area around the Palace, however, suffered slightly less destruction - about 60%. Nearly 30 apartment buildings survived almost untouched and another 50 could have been repaired, according to Hankiewicz. Stalin, however, confiscated and leveled those buildings to make room for the Palace."The area which disappeared was an important, vibrant part of the city, with eclectic and art-nouveau architecture," Hankiewicz said. "Unfortunately, that style was hated by the communists, as it reminded them of capitalism."Soviet architect Lew Rudniew designed the Palace using an elaborate combination of baroque and Gothic styles modeled after the "Seven Sisters," or seven skyscrapers, in Moscow that honored Stalin. Construction finished in 1955 after three years. It put the Palace at 777 feet, the tallest building in Poland and among the top 20 in Europe. <div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"><a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/jlascar/9632560956/">Flickr/Jorge Lascar</a>The ground floor of the main entrance to the Palace.</div></div></div>It contains more than <a href="http://warsawtour.pl/en/tourist-attractions/palace-of-culture-and-science-pa-ac-kultury-i-nauki-2036.html">3,000 rooms</a>. It includes two private universities, the Polish Academy of Sciences, one of the largest conference facilities in Poland, a post office, a movie theater, a swimming pool, two concert halls, a bar, and several museums and libraries. Originally, the building's title was supposed to include Stalin's name - the Palace of Culture and Science of Joseph Stalin. But Stalin died one year after construction began, and his crimes against the Soviet people came to light soon after. His name was never used and was removed from a book held by one of the statutes decorating the building, according to Hankiewicz.Poles like to joke about hating the building. But a more serious movement formed to destroy it after the fall of communism - although it has lost its momentum in the last 25 years, Hankiewicz said"Today, most Warsaw residents, even if they may not think it's pretty, prefer to accept it as a local landmark and a 'souvenir' of times gone by," she said. "Or they don't want to pay for the demolition." And the younger generation, one that never lived under Stalin, has grown accustomed its presence and "even think[s] it's cool," Hankiewicz said, referencing a popular <a href="http://hellowawa.pl/i_love_warsaw,k,1,p,15.html">T-shirt</a> with the Palace as a heart.Today, the area surrounding the Palace serves as Warsaw's topographical downtown, with a large mall and the central metro station. "But unlike before World War II, there is not much life or soul there," Hankiewicz said. Post-World War II, what residents consider Warsaw's center has become scattered to many sections and streets of the city, such as Chmielna, Nowy Swiat, Hoza, Poznanska, and Plac Zbawiciela.

Poland's capital is centered around a 'gift' from Joseph Stalin with a contentious past

Though <keyword id="18876" type="COMPANY" weightage="60" keywordseo="Detroit">Detroit</keyword> has recently been looking like it was hit by a convoy of mile-wide firenados, there remain signs of architectural grandeur illustrating why it was once known as the Paris of the Midwest. Perhaps nowhere is this faded beauty more palpable than in the large-format photography of Philip Jarmain, a Vancouver native who's spent three years shooting Detroit's sublime edifices, sometimes just months before they were wiped out by bulldozers. Jarmain may be from Canada, but he has century-old family ties to Detroit and extreme respect for the place. "At one point this was probably the most important city in the world in terms of innovation, craftsmanship, and manufacturing," he says, adding that one of his childhood heroes was Henry Ford. "It was just such an incredible city in the early 1900s, and obviously things went horribly sideways at some point."<div class="KonaFilter image-container no-rightrail"><div class="image on-image"><a href="http://www.philipjarmain.com/">Philip Jarmain</a>Lee Plaza.</div></div>
When the 41-year-old advertising photographer started hearing disturbing rumblings in 2008, he decided to venture south to document the city's Art Deco and Neo-Classical past before something horrible happened (well, even more horrible than the riots and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Decline_of_Detroit">urban decay</a>). So he hooked up with local historian Sean Doerr of <a href="https://www.facebook.com/buildingsofdetroit">Buildings of Detroit</a> fame, and set out to locate what he calls the "iconic Detroit architectural masterpieces" hidden in a crumbling labyrinth of 80,000 to 100,000 abandoned buildings.
The search became more urgent when he realized many of his subjects were being eliminated by demolition crews trying to reduce the city's expensive-to-maintain footprint (not to mention what he thinks were bored youngsters setting off fires). "It's just sad because it is so beautiful, it has some of the best examples of early 1900s <keyword id="51418" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="architecture">architecture</keyword> of any city in North America," he says. "Also, it probably rivals Baghdad in terms of burnt-out structures."
While many photographers have rushed to stricken Detroit, lured by the so-called "ruin porn" that attracts sightseers to the wastelands of <a href="http://io9.com/5927476/these-photographs-of-present+day-chernobyl-are-utterly-haunting">Chernobyl</a>, Jarmain's mission is a bit different. He wants to preserve these venues with as much accuracy and detail as possible, so that future generations can look back in wonder about how bright the city shined. For that reason he lugs around a sophisticated, Dutch <a href="http://www.cambo.com/">Cambo</a> technical camera and German-engineered Schneider lenses. "These images are 5 feet by 7 feet," he says. "It's the best camera system out there." <div class="KonaFilter image-container no-rightrail"><div class="image on-image"><a href="http://www.philipjarmain.com/">Philip Jarmain</a> Highland Park Police Station (demolished 2012).</div></div> The fruits of his nine trips into Detroit now hang on the walls of San Francisco's <a href="http://meridiangallery.org/american-beauty">Meridian Gallery</a> for the show "American Beauty: The Opulent Pre-Depression Architecture of Detroit." The exhibit focuses on the more ghostly and rotted-out carcasses in his oeuvre, although some of what he photographed has since been rehabbed into functioning spaces. Jarmain points out that several start-up companies have also invested in Detroit, including the luxury-watch company Shinola, a designer of an electric Tesla-like vehicle called the SP01, a nouveau-vintage bicycle maker, <a href="http://www.thecoolist.com/creative-detroit-7-success-stories-for-a-city-on-the-rise/">and others</a>.
"Despite all the hype about <a href="http://www.theatlanticcities.com/jobs-and-economy/2013/07/dont-let-bankruptcy-fool-you-detroits-not-dead/6261/">the bankruptcy</a>, for the first time in 50 years Detroit could come back," he says. "So I'm an optimist."
<div class="KonaFilter image-container no-rightrail"><div class="image on-image"><a href="http://www.philipjarmain.com/">Philip Jarmain</a>Belle Isle Aquarium.</div></div>
<div class="KonaFilter image-container no-rightrail"><div class="image on-image"><a href="http://www.philipjarmain.com/">Philip Jarmain</a>Woodward Presbyterian.</div></div>
<div class="KonaFilter image-container no-rightrail"><div class="image on-image"><a href="http://www.philipjarmain.com/">Philip Jarmain</a>Michigan Central.</div></div>
<div class="KonaFilter image-container no-rightrail"><div class="image on-image"><a href="http://www.philipjarmain.com/">Philip Jarmain</a>Mackenzie High School (demolished 2012).</div></div>
<div class="KonaFilter image-container no-rightrail"><div class="image on-image"><a href="http://www.philipjarmain.com/">Philip Jarmain</a>The German House.</div></div>
<div class="KonaFilter image-container no-rightrail"><div class="image on-image"><a href="http://www.philipjarmain.com/">Philip Jarmain</a>The Farewell Building.</div></div>
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More From The Atlantic Cities: <a href="http://www.theatlanticcities.com/housing/2013/10/where-even-middle-class-cant-afford-live-any-more/7194/">Where Even The Middle Class Can't Afford To Live Anymore</a> <a href="http://www.theatlanticcities.com/arts-and-lifestyle/2013/10/inevitable-death-all-music-scenes/7198/">The Inevitable Death Of All Music Scenes </a><a href="http://www.theatlanticcities.com/commute/2013/10/city-where-bicycles-rule-road/7202/">The City Where Bicycles Rule The Road</a> San Francisco's Meridian Gallery at 535 Powell St. is featuring these images until the October 20th.

You Searched For "Art Nouveau buildings" and got 9 results

Want To Vacation Abroad? These 12 Places Are Creating The Buzz These Holidays

Sanghamitra Mandal

Critical Role's heartbreak prince helped make 'Dungeons & Dragons' cool. Now he's coming for the gothic horror gaming scene.

Cheryl Teh

I left the US and moved to Vienna, the world's most liveable city, a year ago. It's been incredible and I don't want to leave.

Sonya Matejko

4 friends bought a crumbling, 100-year-old mansion in the Sri Lankan jungle for $430,000 and spent years restoring it. Take a look inside.

Claire Turrell

10 places to go in Barcelona beyond what you'll find in most guide books, according to a local travel writer

Jennifer Ceaser

Pottery Barn Teen's Fantastic Beasts Collection features decor and bedding that 'Harry Potter' fans of any age will love

Sunny Chanel

On board the mobile command that's keeping Ukraine's trains running

Alan Chin

Poland's capital is centered around a 'gift' from Joseph Stalin with a contentious past

Christina Sterbenz

This Is The Only Beautiful Architecture Left In Crumbling Detroit

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