Travelsmartplanet

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Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart was born in Salzburg, Austria on January 27, 1756. His family lived there from 1747 to 1773. Mozart was the 7th child of Leopold Mozart, who himself was a musician of the Salzburg Royal Chamber.

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The Goldenes Dachl or Golden Roof (built around 1500) is a landmark and famous symbol in Old Town (Altstadt) Innsbruck, Austria. The edifice was built for Emperor Maximilian I to mark his wedding to Bianca Maria Sforza of Milan.  It served as a royal box where the Emperor and his imperial entourage could sit and enjoy festivals, tournaments, and other events that took place in the square below. Since he did not wish to alienate the allies gained by his first marriage, to Maria of Burgundy, he had an image painted of himself on the balcony between the two women.The roof was decorated with 2,657 fire-gilded copper tiles.

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Here you can imagine dancing at a ball in a palace in Queen Victoria’s days. Her gown appears at the end of the video.
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Aha, so that’s where the prince had Cinderella’s glass slipper made! (at Swarovksi)

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Elton John’s crown made by Swarovski crystal.

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Les Invalides or Hôtel des Invalides is a vast complex of buildings in Paris including museums and monuments relating to the military history of France. As per its name it was originally built by Louis XIV as a hospital and a retirement home for war veterans. Pictured here is the Dôme des Invalides, a large church, the tallest in Paris which contains the tombs of some of France’s war heroes, most notably Napoleon.

The complex had 15 courtyards for military parades. At the church, attendance was mandatory. Louis XIV also commissioned his architect Mansart to construct a separate royal chapel referred to as the Église du Dôme from its most striking feature (pictured). By combining a royal chapel with a veterans’ chapel, the King and his soldiers could attend mass at the same time while entering the place of worship though different entrances, as prescribed by court etiquette at that time.

I’d like to think the gentleman sitting there (in the wheelchair and on the bench) are two of our veteran heros..

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A chance to “dress up” as Prince Albert in Kensington Palace, London.

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We loved the way you could maneuver the reflections in a glass case in Kensington Palace to look like you are wearing Queen Victoria’s crown.

She was quite the catch.

Diana’s gowns are displayed in Kensington Palace with descriptions of where she wore them. She was much taller than we thought.