Many of you reading this article know, but a Formula 1 Grand Prix is not just a race. It’s a long weekend of racing around the circuit in different racing classes.  Besides the formula 1 race, this year, there’s a formula 2 race and Porsche GT3 Middle East tournament. And it’s not only the races. There are practice sessions, qualifications and a lot of side-events that make the Grand Prix a fantastic experience.

Grand Prix entertainment

As there is so much going on on the track and a lot of promoter activities, there’s enough to see. When entering the circuit, there’s an area where you can relax and lay down in the sun. Meanwhile, you will be entertained by the various acts walking around. Getting hungry? Try out one of the many food-stalls that offer nice meals for a reasonable price (considering it’s a world-class sports event).

Depending on the type of ticket you purchase, you have the option to do a ‘Pit Lane walk’ allowing you a backstage preview of the team pit boxes. You will have a chance to watch the cars from up close and walk around on the track.

And even when the day has come to an end, and no more racing will be done at the track, you can stay a little longer and enjoy the concert being held.

The Formula 1 GP of Bahrain race

There is one main event though. That one event most of us came to the circuit for in the first place. It’s the actual Formula 1 GP of Bahrain race. While the free-practice races on Friday and Saturday perhaps only offer little excitement and a first glimpse and smell of the power of formula 1 racing cars, it really starts with the qualification on Saturday.

It’s this session, divided over 3 segments, in which the starting grid for the main race on Sunday is decided. In this session, the cars are tuned up to the max to set the fastest time possible. It’s where the first drama starts unfolding

Having seats at the Main Grandstand, you have a close-up view of the pit lane and start/finish line. With screens set-up on the other side of the track, it’s a good place to keep an eye on all the action. And on race day, it’s where you can keep an eye on all of the excitement. Ranging from the Driver’s track parade to a Gulf Air aircraft flying past close over your head, it’s a spectacle to always remember.

And the race hasn’t started yet! With the cars on the starting grid, the red lights go off one by one until the green lights turn on. An extreme scream of formula 1 car engines will greet you and the race is underway. It’s the start of a nearly 2-hour long spectacle.

Where to stay?

When in Bahrain, where should you stay? We recommend staying in Manama, the capital of Bahrain. While it’s about an hour to drive to the circuit, it offers the opportunity to explore the city and you’ll have a plethora of options when it comes to hotels, restaurants and bars.

Tired of races and interested in a little more culture? Visit Bab Al Bahrain, Al Fateh Grand Mosque, Manama Souq or the Bahrain National Museum for an authentic Bahrain experience.

Another, very good reason to stay in Manama is that you will be close to the airport. Depending on the hours of your flights, this might make it easy to get from and to the airport.

Nature and science combined at Muse

The MUSE museum in Trento offers a great insight in the forming of the region, the extinct and existing wildlife. And all of this is in combination with the latest on science. When you visit MUSE you enter a well organized, modern museum.

The artifacts are well documented and the interactive displays make it a dynamic museum. This makes it a great experience for young and old. The information is written in an easy to understand fashion and is therefore interesting for everyone.

Even better, the information displays are not the only way the gather and learn interesting facts. On every floor you meet employees and volunteers of the MUSE museum that will gladly tell you more about the topics. Many of them are actually scientist either working for MUSE or studying at the Trento university.

A 7 floor journey

I recommend you to start at the lowest floor and make your way up trough this 7 floor museum. On level -1 you find exiting information on dinosaurs, DNA and fossils. Reconstructed skeletons of some of the great ones are on display. It’s hard to image having these enormous beast walking around on the planet, but the fossils shown proof they have really existed.

Trough the tropical garden, you make your way to the first floor where you can experience and try exciting science experiments that explain a lot of different concepts of physics. This floor is especially informative and a lot of fun for the younger ones.

On the first floor you learn more about our sustainability and innovation on our planet, the alpine prehistory and a ‘fablab’. In the latter, companies from the region showcase their work. Currently it’s possible to see and try 3D printing. Another very interesting part on this floor are the research laboratories. You can view prehistoric, geological, biological and palaeontological artifacts stored in the hundered drawers of the cabinets here.

Exploring the region, nature and climate

Moving on to the second floor, we learn loads more on the environment you are currently in; the Dolomites. Learn more about the geology and it’s origin, it’s subsoil resources and the environmental risk and civil protecting of the region. As beautiful as the region is, risks of flooding and other natural disasters are always present yet the resources and beauty however make it a region lots of people want to live.

Getting closer to the top, on the third floor the focus is on the biodiversity and changes of season. Discover all the wonderful creatures and nature all season around. It features many of the wildlife you find in the forest in Trentino and motivates you to go out and explore the region by yourself.

Reaching the last indoor floor, have a look at glaciers, climate, exploration and research. It shows the beauty the of the most majestic natural events but also warns about it’s fragile nature. Lots of glaciers around the world are drastically shrinking, indicating the changes to climate that currently have the world by it’s throat. A floor with beauty combined with a reality check!

Consuming it all at the panoramic terrace

And after all these floors of interesting an informative exhibitions it’s now time to take a breath on the panoramic terrace. With a beautiful view trough the valley and from the city of Trento, it’s an invite to go out in the mountains and enjoy the flora and fauna around. With all the newly learned knowledge and information, you look at it with a different set of eyes.

And if there is one thing to take away from it all, it is to enjoy our planet but be more conscious then ever on our role and the ways we affect and can protect this wonderful world we live in!

How to visit MUSE

The address of MUSE is Corso del Lavoro e della Scienza 3 in Trento. It’s very close to the city center, just 10 minutes away from Piazza del Duomo. The museum has facilities and is completely accessible for the disabled.

Buy your tickets online or at entry of the museum. At the moment of writing adult tickets are a well worth investment of 10,- EUR per person. For families with children discount rates apply.

Parking can be done in the parking garage below the museum. Do note that the garage usually closes one hour after the museum does. And if it’s closed it is properly closed. Consequently, if your car is still there, it’s safely locked up from anyone accessing it, including you! Yes, I speak out of own experience…

More, up to date, information on ticket pricing and opening hours can be found on the MUSE website.

When hiking around in this region you will discover many caves. Having a close look during your hike will even let you find artifacts like cans, bottles and even ammunition of the first world war. This is because this area was the front line of the Italian and Austro-Hungarian war. Ossario del Pasubio tells the story and the museum next doors gives a very detailed view on the history.

The Ossario del Pasubio

The Ossario del Pasubio, translated in English as the Pasubio Monastery, has it’s origins in 1917.  The idea was to build a chapel. A monument dedicated to the fallen in the First World War.

Construction started in 1920 at an altitude of 1217 meters. The position was chosen because of it’s beautiful views over the valley and because it allows you to see the shape of the monastery from across the Vicenza plain.

Construction was hard due to the cold, hostile winters and collection of funds. On August 29, 1926 the monastery was inaugurated. It consist out of two parts. The ossuary and the chapel. You find the ossuary in the tower stand and it includes a central crypt and two concentric galleries. In the central crypt the remains of 70 decorated soldiers are kept while in the galleries the remains of another 5146 Italian and 40 Austro-Hungarians are stored. The bones of the fallen are visible which gives it a chilling touch.

The chapel can be reached by entering the tower on the south. Using stairs to the top, you’ll find the small chapel. The inside of the tower is decorated with beautiful frescoes and artistic stained glass.

The 1^st army museum

The museo 1^a armata completes the story that the monastery is trying to tell. In this museum you will find exhibitions explaining the war itself. It’s a modern museum giving a neutral insight with various levels of perception. It displays memorabilia, images, 3D reconstructions and multimedia outlets.

Events at Ossario del Pasubio

Every year on the last Sunday of June there is a celebration in memory of the fallen. This is also in memory of the anniversary of the bloodiest battle fought on the nearby massive on July the second, 1916.

Combining your visit with the outdoors

The monastery and museum are very interesting to visit but truly stand out by the fact it’s can easily be combined with a wonderful hike. You can plan in a visit during the hike. At the Ossario del Pasubio you find a little bar for refreshments.

Personally I’d recommend to park at Pian de Fugazze and hike around Monte Cornetto. There are several signed post paths either taking you around or even to the top of Monte Cornetto. Note that this hike will take you a couple of hours and making your way up to the top requires fitness.

If you want to skip the hike, take a nice 2 km walk. Walk the road from Pian de Fugazze to the Ossario del Pasubio and be surprised by the views at arrival!

How to get there

You can reach the Ossario de Pasubio using the SS46 from both Rovereto and Schio. This drive itself gives you very nice views over the valley and mountains. From Pian Delle Fugazze, the top of the pass, it’s a small 2 km to Ossiario del Pasubio.

More information on the tower, museum and events can be found on the Ossario del Pasubio website. (Italian only)

Winter joy at Holmenkollen

Vinterglede, as this exhibition is called in Norwegain, is all about the winter joy. Opened in June 2007 on the 1st floor, you can see the many variations of joy the winter and snow brings. Meet great Norwegian skiers from all ages and get a glimpse of the development of the Holmenkollen ski jump over the last century. Yes, the massive ski jump you are under while visiting this museum started out as just a snow jump.

Many great films will show you the joy people and athletes had in the past and present as well as memorable moments in skiing history.

Freedom on Snow

This exhibition opened in November 2014 and is all about the freedom on skiing and snowboarding. You get to see gorgeous pictures and video on modern skiing and snowboarding, the history of modern ski- and snowboarding and much more. This exhibition is not only fun for adults but definitely for children too. In fact, you can try to snowboard and ski yourself on the indoor gyro boards! Be sure to check out the film made by Field Productions.

Polar exhibitions

In the Holmenkollen ski museum you will find exciting information and artifacts from some of the most important polar expeditions in history. Even before the opening of the Holmenkollen ski museum, explorers Nansen and Amundsen donated much of their equipment from their expeditions to the Association for the Promotion of Skiing.

Imagine, Fridtjof Nansen went across Greenland on ski’s in 1888. During his expedition he tested various equipment such as ski’s, sleeping bags and boots. Between 1893 and 1896 Nansen and his crew intended to sail the Artic Ocean in order to reach the North Pole expedition using a ship called ‘Fram’.

Between 1910 and 1912, Roald Amundsen was in a race to beat British explorers to be the first to reach the South pole. Amundsen reached the pole on the 14th of December 1911 while the British team, led by Captain Robert Falcon Scott arrived on the 18th of January 1912. The entire British crew perished on their return journey.

Børge Ousland has undertaken several Arctic and Antarctic expeditions and is a modern example of a polar explorer.

The stories of these explorers are incredible and artifacts from their journey, as well as documents can be found in the Holmenkollen ski museum. It’s hard to imagine how harsh it must have been while we stand in a warm and comfortable modern museum.

Northern Lights

All over the world people are and always have been fascinated by the Northern Lights. It’s a stunning phenomenon that you don’t get to see every day. In fact, you need to be very close to the earth’s pole’s and even then you need a good dose of luck. No wonder visitors from all over the world flock to northern Norway to experience this bucket list natural event.

In the Holmenkollen ski museum you can watch a documentary that takes you on a journey from myths and early science to our modern understanding of the northern lights.

‘Be prepared’

The exhibition be prepared is inevitable and a must for the Holmenkollen ski museum. So far, my stay in Oslo has been snow-less. And while there are some that believe climate change is a hoax created by the Chinese, the fact is that our climate is changing. It has always done, but this time it’s us, humans that cause it. This exhibition show how and what the disastrous outcome can be if we don’t change our ways. The signs are critical and skiing and snowboarding might become a rare sight near Oslo.

Views from the jump tower

Done reading and viewing artifacts behind glass? It’s time to gaze over Holmenkollen and Oslo. And elevator brings you all the way to the top of the ski jump tower. Experience the views an athlete has before he plunges down into the pit filled with people. I’m sure the thought will make you shiver. But I’m also sure you will be amazed by the beautiful panoramic view. See Olso and Oslo fjord in a glimp, look far into the forest, or marka as it’s called in Norwegian and be blown away.

Windmills

The most authentic views are made by the windmills placed along the dyke at Zaanse Schans. From different locations you get a view of them which features on the cover of many brochure about Holland. While the Dutch put together this iconic scene to attract tourist, they are real and original windmills from across the ‘Zaanstreek’.

With 3 oil mills, ‘de Os’ (the Ox), ‘de Zoeker’ (the Seeker) and ‘de bonte Hen’ (the spotted Hen) you can get a good view of how oil can be produced using a windmill.

At the 3 saw mills you get to experience how wood can be manufactured into planks. With ‘de gekroonde Poelenburg’ (the crowned Poelenburg), ‘het jonge Schaap’ (the young Sheep) and ‘het Klaverblad’ (the Cloverleaf) there is enough chance to get a look inside and feel the history.

With a dye mill ‘de Kat’ (the Cat) and mustard mill ‘de Huisman’ (the Houseman) you get the idea of all the possibilities. The Dutch ancestors have been able to come up with all kinds of solutions using the wind as energy source. And if you think all this is for show only, you are wrong. Some of these windmills still operate as a business, if not to just have a side income.

Zaans Museum

In 1998 the Zaans Museum was opened with the goal of preserving and protecting the heritage of the Zaanstreek (Zaan area). The museum features two sub-collections: residential culture and industrial culture. Expect to see regional costumes and Zaan-style painted furniture for example.

‘The Cooperage’, the ‘Jisper house’ and the ‘Weaver’s house’ have recently been added as museum locations with living history at the Zaanse Schans. ‘The Cooperage’ features the craft of coopery, or barrel making. The ‘Jisper house’ tells the story of a fisherman’s wife before the industrial revolution midway trough the 19th century.  And the ‘Weaver’s house’ reveals it’s focus in the name, namely the craft of weaving sailcloth in the 19th century.

Plan your visit

If you are planning to visit Zaanse Schans it’s a good idea to quickly check what you would like to see. The different windmills and museums have different opening hours and there are daily demonstrations of professions and folklore to see. For a up-to-date and detailed overview of this you can visit this page.

Zaanse Schans is a stone’s throw from Amsterdam and can be reached by almost any kind of transportation.

Bus

If you are visiting from Amsterdam, a fun way to go to Zaanse Schans is by combining it with the NDSM wharf and a visit to the center of Zaandam. You can do this by using busline 391, also named the ‘Industrial Heritage Line’. For more information, have a look at bus391.nl.

Train

If you plan on visiting Zaanse Schans by train you need to go to trainstation ‘Koog-Zaandijk’. From Amsterdam Central station this will take you 17 minutes. Subsequently you walk to the Zaanse Schans in about 15 minutes.

Car

Of course the Zaanse Schans is also accessible by car. You can use the address ‘Schansend 7, Zaandam’ on your GPS device. Parking is 9,- euro for a day.

Bike

Depending on your location, going to Zaanse Schans by bike is a true authentic and modern day way of transportation in the Netherlands. Ask a local tourist office for advise as he will have some wonderful cycle routes ready for you.

Considering to visit Zaanse Schans?

We at Live & Explore love to help you out creating your custom itinerary. Listing to your wishes and demands we will keep our eyes open and compliment your visit with tips, advises and excursions.

Contact us and let us know your wishes, or leave your details and we will get it touch with you to discuss your itinerary.