Never doubt that a small group of committed, exceedingly flexible individuals can change the world: Sunday's Yoga for Peace will unite nine countries in sun salutations dedicated to global harmony.

Organized by Global Mala, a nonprofit dedicated to "uniting the global yoga community," the stretchy among us will be taking over public parks from Pocatello, Idaho to Zagreb, Croatia.

Even if the solstice-oriented event doesn't achieve world peace in our time, you could do worse than getting a little fresh air, say in Madrid's famous Parque del Retiro, and working out those computer-related kinks.

Related Stories:
· Participating Cities [Yoga for Peace Official Site]
· Standard Miami's Friday Night Yoga Nights [HC]
· Back of the Envelope Guide: Woodstock Film Festival [Jaunted]

[Photo: banno]]]> egw 2008-09-19T12:30:30-05:00 http://www.jaunted.com/story/2008/9/9/43951/48428

The place to be this Saturday, September 13 is most definitely Madrid, as White Night fever hits the city. La Noche en Blanco 2008 sounds pretty enchanting:

With the full moon watching over them, Madrid residents and visitors will discover a new city, one made with illusions and dreams.

Traditionally, White Nights take place around the summer solstice in cities close to the Arctic Circle where the sky never gets dark for several days straight. To embody that spirit in Madrid, throughout the night, museums will be open, concerts will be on and all public transport will be free. With events running right through until 6 am, you'd better book Sunday as a day to sleep off that cultural overload.

Related Stories:
· La Noche en Blanco 2008 [Official Site]
· Sleepless White Nights Hit Europe [Jaunted]
· Madrid Travel Guide [Jaunted]

[Photo: Clara en su mundo]]]> amandak 2008-09-09T09:30:25-05:00 http://www.jaunted.com/story/2008/8/20/12269/5867

A Spanair MD-82 bound for the Canary Islands skidded off a runway and caught fire at Madrid's Barajas Airport, leading to reports that only 25 of the 173 people on board survived.

Flight 5022 (also listed as Lufthansa 255) reportedly suffered an engine fire around 5 pm local time while attempting an emergency landing on Runway 6, immediately after takeoff. Despite the efforts of 11 emergency vehicles, on the scene reports are putting the death toll at around 150--though only 45 fatalities have been confirmed as of now.

It's the worst fatal airplane crash in Spain since a 1985 incident in Bilbao. Prime minister Jose Luis Zapatero has been called to the scene from his vacation in Doñana National Park in Andalusia.

Related Stories:
· At Least 45 Dead in Madrid Plane Crash [AP]
· Dozens of Dead Following Crash upon Takeoff at Barajas [El Pais, in Spanish]

[Photo of a Spanair MD-82: thomasbecker]]]> egw 2008-08-20T13:20:13-05:00 http://www.jaunted.com/story/2008/7/21/81129/8417

To stand before Picasso's magnificent "Guernica" canvas is to be bowled over by the artist's depiction of the horrors of war. But curators at the Reina Sofia Museum, where the painting has made his home since 1992, say the major work needs some major work done--and might even be too fragile for restoration.

A particular problem according to experts is that the painting is too fragile to move, even to its namesake city, while it used to join exhibitions as far away as Chicago and Brazil. It was defaced in 1974 by an antiwar protester who added the words "Kill Lies All" to the painting, though that has since been removed.

Despite damage sustained, the painting is protected not by alarmed glass but just by a rail and guards. You're not supposed to take pictures, though--hence this stealth shot.

Related Stories:
· "Guernica" Needs Special Care, Say Curators [AP]
· Madrid Travel coverage [Jaunted]

[Photo: oppenodom]]]> egw 2008-07-21T09:17:26-05:00 http://www.jaunted.com/story/2007/11/9/135847/274

Our Fall Culture Travel Map can get you to the good museums.

And here we thought Goya just made delicious black beans and pastel colored sodas that taste like cartoons. Apparently Goya also makes masterworks of 19th century Neo-classicist portraiture, hung not in the aisles of your local bodega but in the newly renovated halls of Madrid's Prado Museum.

This Fall the Prado is pulling the classics out of storage to fill their new wing with little-seen examples of 19th Century Spanish art. Hidden from the public eye, these paintings and sculptures have been the subject of many years of research and restoration and will also be featured in an exhaustive catalog of the Prado's collection. Titled A Collection Rediscovered, this exhibition takes the viewer through the years that separate Francisco de Goya from Pablo Picasso.

The exhibition runs until April 24 with a concert on November 16 and a screening on the 17 that both explore themes of 19th Century Spanish art. Admission is relatively cheap (about $9) but bring whatever special ID (student, teacher, AARP?) you have lying around to drop the price through the Prado's liberal discount admissions policy.

Related Links:
· The 19th Century in the Prado [Official Site]
· Fall Culture Travel coverage [Jaunted]
· Fall Culture Travel Map [Jaunted]

[Photo: Lanpernas 2.1]]]> Judson 2007-11-09T15:15:01-05:00 http://www.jaunted.com/story/2007/10/25/172133/23

You don't have to stay at home just because the leaves are changing. Follow along on our Fall Culture Map to discover what's happening this autumn.

While Americans fawn over events dedicated to cookie jars, butter sculptures and the art of sausage-making, a European festival needs some heft in order to distinguish itself in the culture glut of The Old World. Luckily Festival de Otoño (Autumn Festival) in Madrid has the stats to set it above the rest.

For five weeks every autumn, invited companies take the stage daily and nightly. This year's shows include 73 theatre, 21 dance, 13 music and 39 circus performances. The 28 international productions hail from world-renowned companies from a host of European countries, the United States, South America and Asia. To find that kind of diversity stateside, you'd have to ride "It's a Small World" at Disneyland.

La Comédie-Française, which claims the title of the western world's oldest theater company, just wrapped the first Spanish performance of Molière's Le Misanthrope. And while it's too late to catch the French comedy of manners, ¡Piratas, Piratas! might be more fun anyway: 60 acrobats from Mongolia, Russia, India, Malaysia and China flip and fly in a Cirque-like battle between good and bad pirates.

Now in its 24th year, the Autumn Festival started October 15 and lasts until November 18.

Related Stories:
· Festival de Otoño [Official Site]
· Fall Culture Travel coverage [Jaunted]
· Fall Culture Travel Map [Jaunted]
]]> ced138 2007-10-26T10:20:01-05:00 http://www.jaunted.com/story/2007/6/18/84047/0807

Forget America's favorite pastime. You want to roll with the Beckhams, you'd better enjoy the world's game -- soccer! Or as they prefer to call it, football. Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes jetted off to Madrid this weekend to see David Beckham play in his final game for Spanish team Real Madrid. (As true footie fans know, Beckham was signed to the L.A. Galaxy earlier this year, making him basically the only star of his stature playing in the U.S. MLS league.) Victoria Beckham and the kids sat in the stands explaining to TomKat why there aren't any cheerleaders.


Real Madrid won the championship, but David Beckham was taken off the field (perhaps in retaliation of his transfer). Of course, the best way to see el Bernabeu, for the first OR last time, is when it's packed with screaming fans singing profane songs and waving HALAMADRID scarves. But if you can't, the stadium is open from 10 to 6 daily for tours -- and at two blocks up the metro, it's an easy addition to your Madrid itinerary.

Related Stories:
· Madrid Travel [Jaunted]
· Hotels in Madrid [HotelChatter]

[Photo: JustJared] ]]> egw 2007-06-18T09:22:45-05:00 Search Jaunted string http://www.jaunted.com/search/