This month we talk about:

MARIA PIA FORTE PRIZE

Maria Pia Forte was born in Lisbon on 12th August 1943. She was the youngest daughter of an itinerant family. Her father was a famous twentieth century journalist; he started out as a correspondent in Paris, then at the front during the Spanish Civil War, and later, in Spain during the first years of the Second World War. Maria Pia had two sisters born in Tuscany, their mother’s home, and a sister and a brother born in Madrid, the penultimate stop of the family’s European “pilgrimage” that ended in Lisbon, where they waited for a ship to take them back to Italy as refugees in October 1944...more

ACUTE MOUNTAIN SICKNESS

At high altitudes the barometric pressure diminishes, which means a lowering of the oxygen pressure in the air. The amount of oxygen available to the human body is reduced, and causes a phenomenon called hypoxia. The higher you climb, the more you become hypoxic. In other words, at high altitude you do not « oxigenate », and therefore your physical performance is reduced. The body reacts to this phenomenon by increasing the heartbeat and breathing rate, in order to increase the intake of oxygen that feeds every cell of our body when we breathe...more

A POSTCARD FROM VIENNA

What to see: *the three castels  (Belvedere, Schönbrunn and Hofburg). Schönbrunn is not to be missed (by the way, this is what tourists visit when they only spend one day in Vienna): If you are fans of Princess Sisi, you must visit Schönbrunn and Hofburg, though the Sisi Museum is in Hofburg, in the royal apartments. In Hofburg you can also find the National Horse Riding School and the National Library. If you love Klimt, don't miss Belvedere. At the entrance you are usually provided with an audio guide (except for Belvedere). Gardens must be wonderful in springtime and summer. When I went, there was one meter of snow, so I cannot tell you much...more