The Euro 2008 is well over and what could be a better treat for worn-out footballers and hung-over football fans (plus the rest of us) who need to regenerate body and soul than a wellness and spa-stay at the amazing Rogner-Bad Blumau hotel.

The hotel - that looks like a mixture between a hobbit-village and an old Arabic citadel - is nestled in the gently rolling hills of the Styrian hot springs region in South East Austria.

Rogner-Bad Blamau’s strong colors and asymmetrical shapes are drawn by the world famous Austrian architect and artist Friedensreich Hundertwasser who has designed every detail in the hotel.

The hotel is the pride of small village Bad Blamau, and not only is it amazing to look at, it is also the right place to be if you want to relax and recover.

Among other it offers different beauty treatments and medical services and it has its own holistic center called 'Findedich' (find yourself). Here you can get in contact with your inner self through different alternative treatments such as sound-therapy and Shiatsu massage.

There are different indoor and outdoor pools with water from two hot springs which according to Rogner-Bad Blumau brings vitality, heat and energy to the hotel! And of course the hotel's restaurant serves organic food.

Rogner-Bad Blumau is only a 40 minutes drive away from the airport in Graz and 90 minutes away from Vienna.

Author David Rich Momondo 

Find more hotels in Austria here. 

If you fancy cheap beer and table-tennis - then visit Dr. Pong in Berlin’s Prenzlauer Berg. At this ultra-popular bar you’ll probably spend most of the night with a table-tennis bat in one hand and a beer in the other.

Dr. Pong is situated in a trashy and run-down room with raw concrete walls and floors (on the website it looks a lot more polished than it actually is). The main attraction of the bar is placed in the centre of the room – a rather decayed table-tennis, which every night constitutes the battleground for competitive “round-the-table-games” between the arty and studenty crowd. Everybody can join in but remember - fair play is taken seriously!

The table-tennis goes on until the early hours and you can expect the bartenders and DJs to grab a bat and join in after they’ve closed down the bar.

Dr. Pong, Eberswalder Strasse 21, Prenzlauer Berg

Author David Rich Momondo

The exposition that gave us the Eiffel Tower in Paris and the Atomium in Brussels hits the north eastern Spanish town of Zaragoza June 14. We are of course talking about Expo (also known as World’s Fair), which today is the third largest event in the world in terms of economic and cultural impact, after the FIFA World Cup and the Olympic Games.

Zaragoza has never been a favorite among foreign tourists, but just like Frank Gehry’s already iconic Guggenheim Museum has put Bilbao on the world map, the Expo 2008 will be a major boost to Zaragoza’s tourism industry and the organizers expect that the event will attract more than 5 million visitors.

The theme of Expo Zaragoza 2008 is as hot and contemporary as it can get: 'Water and sustainable development'! To stick to the topic the event is being placed next to the River Ebro, where the exhibition’s most emblematic buildings will be the Water Tower, a 76-metre-high transparent building designed to evoke a drop of water (don’t miss the 720 square meters panoramic bar at the upper floor), Zaha Hadid's Bridge Pavilion, a 270-metre-long covered bridge crossing the river and the River Aquarium, which will be the biggest freshwater aquarium in Europe.

To further emphasize the focus on water and sustainable development the organizers has hooked up with Bob Dylan, who has written a new version of his song “A hard rain’s a-gonna fall” for the occasion.

In total, Expo Zaragoza 2008 has 140 pavilions and 3.400 shows and cultural events are planned. The exposition will be held from June 14 to September 14.

Author David Rich Momondo

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Photo by Gillesklein 

“Where in Paris can I find the highest concentration of braless women?” I have never before asked myself this question (honestly!), but a French senior political advisor has, and he gives the answer in his book ‘Guide des Jolies Femmes De Paris’ or ‘Guide to pretty women in Paris’.

In the 190-page book, which for sure won’t win him many fans among feminists, Pierre-Louis Colin - a speech-writer for the French foreign minister - lists the best places to ogle women in Paris.

"Just as every region has its gastronomy, every quartier has its feminine speciality," as Colin poetically puts it.

According to Colin good spots are the Madeleine neighborhood, where the women are noted for their ‘sublime legs’ and rue Montorgueil where "trendy youth notable for their G-strings and the near disappearance of the bra", are to be found. But the top spot on Colin's list is the Menilmontant district in the 20. arr, where you'll find: "perfectly shameless cleavages, radiant breasts often uncluttered by a bra."

In the book, Colin generously shares his insider tips and he writes that in the Café Louis-Phillipe in the 4. arr guests can look up women’s skirts as they ascend a spiral staircase. Charming!

While many of my female friends would probably call the book a creepy pervert’s guide to Paris, monsieur Colin insists on viewing the subject of braless women in a larger context by arguing that the freedom to contemplate the beauty of women is a key part of French culture and by stating that his book is a rebellion against Anglo-Saxon culture and political correctness. Remember this excuse the next time you’re told off for telling dirty jokes!

Writer David Rich Momondo

Summer is up and cities across Europe have planted palms trees and trucked in tons of sand to urban riverfronts to create the feeling of a lazy day at the shore. Urban beaches are a hit and Momondo guides you to our favourites.

Paris Plages

Paris Tourist Office/Amélie Dupont

Take thousand tons of sand, palm trees, deckchairs, glistering torsos and ubiquitous ice cream sellers - and you have the Paris Plages. The ‘Parisian Riviera’ spans 3 km along the right bank of the Seine from Louvre to Pont Sully.

During the summer, parts of the riverside are closed off from traffic and you can join the thousands of Parisians and tourists that enjoy the rather surreal experience lying in middle of the street wearing only bikini or speedos and a top hat. Beware, no g-strings, topless or nudist beachgoers allowed unless you want a 38 € fine!

Paris Tourist Office/Amélie Dupont

The Paris Plages is a highly popular, free 'event' instituted by the City Fathers in 2002. Originally it was thought of as a getaway for the thousand of Parisians who can’t afford to go on holiday, but the project was immediately adopted by the whole city and now millions of people visit the beach next to the city hall every summer.

On hot summer days Paris Plages is packed with sun-craving citizens and it is THE place in Paris to show the world your newest tattoo and the result of a long winter's hard work in the gym.

Beyond the stretch from Louvre to Pont Sully there is also a beach on the left bank of the Seine at the foot of the François Mitterrand National Library (13 arr.). Here is a floating swimming pool (Piscine Josephine Baker) filled with recycled water from the river for those seeking some relief from the summer sun, especially as the dirty water of the Seine itself is not a welcome thought.

The Paris Plages run from 18 July to 18 August 2008. 

Go further: Beach life in Berlin.

Written by David Rich Momondo