The Wood Whisperer

Woodcarver Geppetto has found his match in real life with Italian artist Peter Demetz who has a unique gift of turning wood into flesh.

Peter Demetz’s wooden sculptures are so life-like that one cannot help but admire his sense of perfection, attention to particularities, and his mastery of human anatomy. Peter Demetz’s wooden art pieces look like paintings done with warm wooden color with special attention to tactile appearance and details like the creases of clothing, body curves, and strands of hair.

Peter Demetz’s life-like artistry, and very much life-like is stunningly emotional. It spotlights those who are always looking elsewhere, in the horizon, as if longing to escape their present.

That is why his art pieces rarely ever face the viewer – their backs are turned, and their sight is either fixed afar or on the ground. As most tortured souls, always looking afar, gazing dreamily in search of escape, comfort and hope elsewhere.

As if photographed during their daily lives, Peter Demetz captures that vulnerable moment when  sadness overtakes them, which he depicts by their posture. His sculptures take center stage while the background fades away.

Like a seasoned poet, Peter Demetz captures beautifully the sadness of those who might be present among us but their hearts are elsewhere, those who might want to disappear but in reality all they really want is to be found.    

Newron Motors

Enjoy the label of being a thrill seeker and a rebel with an environmental cause with Newron Motors, which allows you to experience a wild ride with wind in your hair as you ride an environment-friendly timeless and delicate looking electric motorcycle, tailor-made at “l’atelier de confection”.

The original Newron Motors, electric motorcycle, targets true connoisseurs who are seeking a new experience. With its e-intelligence, its capacity to self-assess its power supply in order to  reach the desired destination to ensure there is, a maintenance signal to remind riders that is time for a check-up. Aside from its beautiful exterior, the design is minimalist; the motorcycle has only one swing arm on its right-hand side and a driveshaft on the left, while the motor is tucked away neatly.

The innovative French Newron Motors was established in 2016, by Sébastien MAHUT, Electronic engineer and electric propulsion expert, and Michel SERAFIN, Systems design engineer and manager.

The World’s First Cheese Hotel Room

The posh Camden town – London, will soon be the birthplace of every cheese-fanatic, fantasy come true:  The world’s first cheese-themed hotel room. Thanks to a partnership between Café Rouge, a French-styled restaurant chain with over 70 sites across the UK, and Cuckooz Homes, serviced apartments, the cheese-themed room will be available for guests to enjoy.

With cheese wallpaper covering the walls, cheese emoticons, funny quotes like “I’m so fondue of you” and “will you brie mine?”, cheese themed bed linen, The Cheese Suite promises to be a cheesy experience.

Guests will enjoy taking pictures in a fully yellow and cheese puns decorated room.

This marketing stunt is part of Café Rouge’s new cheesy menu release. The Cheese Suite will only be open until February 6, so guests looking to spend the night snuggled up in cheese-themed bedding, have to hurry-up and book this original room.

The Brainchild of Globalization

The Brainchild of Globalization is Franchising.

A franchise is a type of license acquired by the franchisee to allow access to the trademarks, knowledge, processes, of the franchisor. The license allows the franchisee to sell the franchisor’s name, product or service. The franchisee pays the franchisor an initial start-up and annual licensing fees. The most renowned franchises are of the likes of McDonald’s , KFC, Burger King…etc.

However, the fast food industry wasn’t the first to launch the franchise concept. The concept of itself dates back to the mid-19th century. American inventor, actor, and businessman Isaac Singer was the first to think about the franchise concept, when he invented the Singer sewing machine. In order to guarantee its spread, he started selling franchises to trademarked sewing machines to larger areas.

Franchising didn’t really develop until the early 1900s when the automated manufacturers and soft drink companies developed their own franchise network in order to grow their distribution.

It was Harry Axen, a farm equipment Sales Manager for Allis Chairmen, who initiated the fast food franchising boom. He stumbled upon McCullough who created a Dairy Queen mix, and used Harold Oltz freezer to chill the liquid dairy mix and produce a constant flow of soft ice cream. By 1948, Dairy Queen had more than 2500 outlets in operation, some of the franchisees added hot-dogs and other food products as well.

In 1932, Howard Johnson’s restaurant became the first modern restaurant franchise. Howard Johnson had initially founded a successful restaurant in Quincy, Massachusetts in the late 1920s. He sold to independent operators the right to use the same name, food, supplies, logo and even building design in exchange for a fee.

For over 90 years Howard Johnson’s restaurant enjoyed massive success throughout the 1960s and 1970s, with more than 1,000 combined company-owned and franchised outlets. It later established a chain of hotels that got franchised separately. Nowadays, Howard Johnson hotels and motels are part of Wyndham Hotels and Resorts. Howard Johnson’s restaurants branches dwindled in number. Today only one branch remains.

Typically, established brands wanted to go global, and look across borders for untapped markets and growth.

Banana Leaf is the New Plastic

Tenith Adithyaa is a multi-talented young man who at the age of 20 has amassed a series of accomplishments ranging from inventions to scientific finds to winning a Guinness world record.
With an unwavering dedication to humanity, the dedicated Indian citizen, has made it his personal quest to find solutions and innovations that could help the society at large

Tenith Adithyaa tackled the environmental crisis caused by the overflow of plastic by perfecting the Banana Leaf Technology, a cellular technology to create eco-friendly materials. In his mind this superior sustainable biomaterial will put an end to plastic as it surpasses it with its flexibility, affordability, and durability.

Freshly harvested banana leaves usually only last few days before breaking down. Being unable to sustain their shape, endure cold and heat, over a period of time, banana leaves were considered unpractical and unable to rival plastic. That is why Tenith Adithyaa invented a technology for cellular enhancement. The technology enhances cells, strengthens cell walls of leaves and prevents pathogenic agents from destroying the cells. These processed biomaterials are biodegradable, healthy, pathogenic resistant, human-friendly and completely eco-friendly. A viable replacement for disposables, it prevents the destruction of around 7 billion trees annually.

Several countries such as India are large producer of bananas, thus the potential of having banana leaves used for a good purpose rather than being disposed of.

Banana Leaves join the rank of other processed natural materials such as algae, mushrooms, and cacti in an attempt to fight plastic pollution.

Italian Painter Marco Grassi

Marco Grassi is an Italian oil painter who with a strike of a brush captures the soul and essence of his muse. His perfectionism is mind buckling, spectators can mistake his paintings for photographs.

You can easily drown in the eyes of the portrait you are gazing upon; you get the illusion that infront of you stands a living, breathing human being, a volcano of emotions that will come to life in any second.

Marco Grassi’s hyperrealism is to an extent that his muse might mistake his paintings for mirrors. His eye for details, his thoroughness, combined with his talent, result in a realism that can take one’s breath-away. With a dash of surrealism, Grassi breathes a pinch of magic into his portraits. Marco Grassi subjects’ have such an intensity in their eyes and emotions in their facial expressions that appeal to the observer and immediately forge a bond with him.

Born in 1966, the Italian painter currently lives in Lugano, Switzerland.  Since the beginning of his career, Marco Grassi developed his own style, which pays tribute to women’s raw beauty and capture their vulnerability while they are being painted.

Grassi‘s paintings have been exhibited around the world, such as: Art Basel, SCOPE Basel and the Moscow Art Fair. He was selected to be at the opening of the Italian Pavilion at the Venice Biennale in 2011.

The Willy Wonka of Japan

Willy Wonka might be a fictional character who appears in Roald Dahl’s 1964 children’s novel Charlie and the Chocolate Factory and its sequel Charlie and the Great Glass Elevator. However the eccentric owner of the Wonka Chocolate Factor has been reincarnated in the owner of Candy maker Nagatoya.

It all started 170 years ago during the Edo period in the quiet castle town of Aizu in the north east of Japan, the lord of the land ordered a small sweetmaker to start creating confectionery for the common people. Since then, Nagatoya has been creating simple delicious sweets that have their roots bedded deep in the community. To this day, we welcome our customers to our traditional shop, which is over a hundred years old.

Nagatoya‘s latest creation is ‘Fly Me to the Moon’ sweet jelly which each slice displays mesmerizing image of a bluebird who gradually spreads its wings and approaches the ever-changing moon.

The dessert might be considered expensive (US$32) but with its beautiful gift box, illustrated by the award-winning artist Reika Masuda  and the fact that each bite is a magical experience, makes it all worthwhile.

The Harry Potter College

Welcome to the world of Harry Potter, where everything is possible and the unimaginable is real.

Harry Potter might be a series of fictional novels, written by British author J. K. Rowling, about the adventures of a young wizard and his friends, all of whom are students at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, but in Poland you take center stage and the story becomes a chronicle about your adventures.

With Harry Potter fans in mind, a castle in Czocha in southwestern Poland has been metamorphosed into a school of wizardry. People of 18+ years, from different backgrounds, and countries, gather for a four days magical experience where they can role-play with others.

The rule is simple and yet co-dependent explains Claus Raasted, the mastermind behind the project; so in order to create magic, everyone needs to be complacent. If someone points a stick at you and says “silence”, you can either go with it and act as if you were witch crafted into silence or pretend that the spell did not work on you.

Between classes, students or apprentice sorcerers are encouraged to explore secret rooms and the magical forest. This helps them develop their characters and narratives.

Although Warner Brothers owns the franchises right, they have allowed this community to proceed with their none-profit venture.

The organizers behind College of Wizardry  have done a successful Crowdfunding Campaign in order to buy a castle and turn it into an official collage. The community and fans from 37 countries rallied and reached 114% funding, with more than 110 000$ raised from over 700 backers!

Over the years, College of Wizardry has hosted thousands of players from all over the World. A home away from home to wand-erers and dreamers, a place to make lifelong friends, and together bring to life a reality of wonder and mystery. International Emmy Award Winning immersive storytelling studio The Company P has taken on College of Wizardry to continue this magical community together with its fans and creatives.

To get to the College, you can either travel by your own broomstick OR take the Witchard Busfrom Berlin. It picks up (and on Sunday delivers!) passengers at both airports (TXL/SXF). The bus leaves from Tegel (TXL) at 9.30 on Thursday and is back on Sunday at 18.00. It leaves Schönefeld (SXF) on 11.00 on Thursday and is back on Sunday at 16.30. The price for a round trip is 70€.

Not-for-profit Search Engine

Environmentalist rejoice, we found the perfect search engine for you. Ecosia is the world’s largest not-for-profit search engine based in Berlin, Germany, that plants trees by donating 80% or more of its profits to nonprofit organizations that focus on Reforestation.

On its landing page, you find the number of trees planted thanks to the number of users who resorted to searching through the engine.

In 2018, Ecosia’s CEO, Christian Kroll, answered users demands over finding a way to permanently save the Hambach Forest. This resulted in Ecosia,  offered €1 million to buy and save the last remaining stretch of the Hambach Forest in Germany.

Founded in 2009, Ecosia,has honored its promise and planted over 40 million trees  across 19 planting sites worldwide. The company is planning for more by end of 2019. In Autumn, Ecosia has even taken her mission a step forward by giving away shares to the Purpose Foundation, to ensure that founders can never profit. Ecosia also has its own solar plant for renewable energy.

The Forest Man

Mājuli , an 880 square kilometers (340 sq mi) island, listed as the world’s largest river island in the Guinness Book of World Records. Long ago it was a rich flourishing oasis with wildlife bit grew barren with time as people cut down its trees and ravaged its nature.

In 1979, Jadav Payeng, who belongs to the Indian Mising tribe in Assam, decided to go to the rescue of his beloved childhood forest.

The tenacious man left every morning his small hut carrying with him seeds to plant in Mājuli . He did so not only for his love of nature but in order to secure a better future for his wife Binita, and their 3 children (two sons and a daughter).  Payeng knows the importance of the forest. Being a farm owner, who is raising cattle and buffalo in order to sell their milk for a living, he knows that the destruction of the forest is the root of his problems. He attributed the loss of  around 100 of his cows and buffaloes to tigers because wild animals have been plucked from their habitats and are seeking food elsewhere.

For 37 years, every morning Payeng repeated his routine, which resulted in the replenishment of the forest which is twice the size of New York City’s Central Park, USA. With the return of the vegetation so did the animals: deers, rhinos, and tigers.

Thanks to the tenaciousness and relentlessness of one man, Mājuli  has flourished into an unparalleled oasis.