Cultour

05/07/2015

‘’I give street artists a chance to sell their work.’’

Robert Burt moved to Barcelona to start a new life. He opened a gallery just like in his previous hometown LA.

Hollywood, it is the place where people go to make their dreams come true. Robert Burt did the opposite thing, he left Hollywood for Barcelona in pursuit of his dream. Things maybe didn’t end up the way he expected, but by having one of the coolest urban art galleries around, he can’t complain. …

01/07/2015

Do Turkish journalists follow Erdogan's censorship? Our Reporter Rosa went to a journalism school in Istanbul to find out.

What is the purpose of a journalist? To inform society in the most reliable and objective way and to make sure the people who read, watch or listen the news, know what is going on behind scenes that they cannot easily see on their own. Independency and curiosity are therefore a must for journalists…

25/06/2015

Gelato-master Silvana Vivoli talks gelato-drama and why she chooses to mind her own business. Read on:

http://www.schoolvoorjournalistiek.com/europeanculture/vivoli-three-generations-gelato/

23/06/2015

Stockholm, a multicultural city?

A big part of its citizens with migration background struggles with daily racism, unemployment and bad education. We met spoken-word poets who "try to fight injustice through culture". Learn more about their poetry, their life and their Stockholm on CulTour.

Stockholm’s ghettos find a stage: Young spoken-word poets spread stories about their life and struggle in the Swedish capital’s left behind suburbs. They want to start a revolution for a lost generation – and they are being heard.

22/06/2015

Are Barcelona's citizens losing their city to tourists?

Barcelona: it is the place that has it all. We all love the liberal no pasa nada (no problem) feeling of the capital city of Catalonia, and therefore it is not crazy that every year more and more people come to visit Barcelona. All these tourists have a huge impact on the city, though. …

22/06/2015

Meet the man who started a court action against the oil company Shell and the mayor of London. He is fighting the planned building of eight skyscrapers of luxury housing in the heart of London.

In his forties , George Turner is a writer and researcher for the Tax Justice Network, a coalition which investigates tax avoidance, tax competition and tax havens. Before that, he worked for Simon Hughes, former deputy of the Liberal Democrats in the Parliament. He spends his evenings and weekends…

21/06/2015

"Only on Friday and Saturday night I am gay", Turgay Bayindir says.

Bayindir lives in Istanbul. As a volunteer he tries to help g**s, le****ns, bisexuals and transgenders with their insecurities as well as with juridical questions.

This June the twenty- second edition of the Istanbul gay pride will be held, but don’t be mistaken; it is not a pride as we know it like in Amsterdam: one big party with half-naked men and women dancing on boats that float through the canals. In Istanbul it is a peaceful march to point …

21/06/2015

Interested in trying bacalhau, which is dried and salted cod? Or pastel de nata, an egg tart pastry? Join us on a culinary journey to Portugal.

http://www.schoolvoorjournalistiek.com/europeanculture/little-secret/

20/06/2015

Los Españoles primero. Spain's high unemployment rate leads to an increase of racism all over the country. Layla, one of our reporters, spoke to a young political activist, professors and a homeless man about the current situation in Zaragoza.

How fascism is a renewed subject in Zaragoza, forty years after the end of the dictatorship It is nine o’ clock in the evening in the north of the centre of Zaragoza. It is busy in the street; people are walking home from work or are drinking a beer on a terrace. Across …

20/06/2015

Budapest the "new Hollywood"?

"For one production I had to disguise Hungary as six different cities. Italy and Berlin weren’t hard to do. Japan was a difficult assignment", Gergó Bakos, location scout and production Manager, says.

Every now and then you can find Hollywood celebrities and big film crews in and around the city of Budapest. Last month, for example, Tom Hanks was spotted during the making of the new ‘Da Vinci Code’ film and Ridley Scott just left the country after completing ‘The Martian’, an upcoming sci-fi film…

19/06/2015

Human towers are an important part of Catalan culture. Our reporter Elizabeth travelled to Barcelona to learn more about its history and the basics of how to build a solid tower.

Everyone that has ever visited Barcelona has probably walked down the famous La Rambla, paid the maximum price for a little tapas and has seen the Sagrada Familia by the great Gaudí. But this city, the capital of Cataluña, has a lot more to offer than mass tourism. Take a walk on the wild side …

19/06/2015

Have you ever been to a mechanical wonderland? Discover Bimbo Town in Leipzig, a place where you might get knocked by jumping sofas.

Bimbo Town, one of Leipzig’s most creative and magical hubs could be shut down following enquiries into the safety of the un-renovated room at the back of the Spinnerei Gallery. EXCLUSIVE TOUR OF BIMBO TOWN Walking through the darkened, lifeless room that sits still on a damp summers night, it’s har…

18/06/2015

Slow Food is more than just delicious food. It is about ethical background work and sustainability. Our reporter and editor-in-chief Jonna travelled to Turin, the center of Slow Food, to find out more about the movement.

’Good, clean and fair food’ – the philosophy behind Slow Food. Italy, especially Turin, is often considered as the center of Slow Food. People from all over the world go there in the search of traditional Italian food, but Slow Food has much more to offer.

18/06/2015

Meet Lauren Barkley, a dog au pair:

After she split up with her boyfriend, Lauren Barkley returned from Greece to England, going back to her roots. She was born in Wales but is now spending her days in London. Namely, two years ago, she was surfing the internet and found a job as a house keeper, which quickly transformed into her play…

17/06/2015

Do you know how ice cream was made in the 1500s? Find out on:

In the city of the dessert’s origin, “artigianale” gelato-makers show that gelato is an art, not just a business. The climb up to Piazzale Michelangelo is steep and long. The city of Florence is nestled among the green hills of Tuscany. This elevated plaza is one of the best vantage points to see th…

15/06/2015

We are currently celebrating our official launch. A lot of new stories went online today.
The whole team would like to thank our amazing editor in chief Jonna for the great work she's done 🎉

14/06/2015

“My engineer colleagues from studying in Spain earn 900 euros for a full-time job – if they have luck", says Beatriz Almonte. She moved to Germany to escape that fate.

Every second young person in Spain is unemployed. Many are turning away from their country in search of a job. Even in Germany, not everything is paradise.

13/06/2015

Too short to play the violin? This women will prove you wrong.

As a young music student, Hungarian Zsuzsa Debre was told she wasn’t tall enough to perform on stage. Today, she lives in Germany and still plays in different concerts and has her own “music house,” too. Debre sits down at the table and smiles charmingly. Her day has been long and tiring: practici…

13/06/2015

Have you ever wondered what the life of street artists must look like when you saw them performing on the streets? Our reporter Grayce spoke to Barcelona's artists - about their life, their art and their daily struggle.

The lyrics of The Crusaders’ Street Life song depict the spirit and mood of the artists on the streets of Barcelona. Recently I spent some time absorbing the atmosphere, culture and way of life of the street artists in this vibrant city. ‘I play the street life because there’s no place I can go Stre…

12/06/2015

Istanbul can be seen as a mecca for stray cats. They partially owe their status to the religion of Islam. Read more about Istanbul's cats on CulTour Magazine.

Istanbul is known as a city of cats, stray cats mostly. due to the religion of Islam, which is practiced in Turkey, these cats living on the street are welcome and better cared for than one might think. What role does tourism play in that context and why some cats still need urgent help. 6 AM in Pen…

11/06/2015

We just added a bunch of new stories to our website!

Follow our reporter Hannah on her trip to Istanbul's hamams. Be prepared to feel all squeaky-clean just by reading about her experience of the Turkish bathhouse culture.

An expanding tourist industry brings billions of dollars into Turkey annually. As in many other European countries, there is a fine line to be walked in attempts to maintain culturally significant national landmarks while profiting off of paying visitors. Setting Turkey apart, however, is the above-…

10/06/2015

Talking about menstruation and stuffing your mouth with marshmallows can make you famous. At least that's been the case for the Stockholm-based Clara Henry. She's a full-time YouTuber.

Clara Henry, a 21-year-old Swedish vlogger, gained YouTube fame by talking about her periods, soft drinks and feminism.

09/06/2015

"25 Verde" is a tree house located right in the city center of Turin. Its inhabitants and architect Luciano Pia give an idea of what it's like to live in a forest. An urban forest.

Just a minutes walk from Dante metro station is a building called ’25 Verde’. This residential building by Luciano Pia fits perfectly on ’Via Chiabrera’.

08/06/2015

BREAKING NEWS: We just published the first three stories on our website.

Did you ever wonder how blind people distinguish money or how to help them if they ask you for the way?

Follow our reporter Han on her tour through the Invisible Exhibition in Warsaw by checking this link.

Everything is black. Your eyes are opened, but darkness is all you can see. There is not even a stream of light you can rely on. The Invisible Exhibitioin in Warsaw (Niewidzialna Wystawa) is an interactive journey that shows how to experience the world without sight.

07/06/2015

Can you imagine eight huge skyscrapers surrounding the Shell Centre (left in the picture)? That is the plan that Shell and Carnary Wharf developers presented and Lambeth Council and the Mayor of London have accepted. One man, George Turner, started court action againts this giants. He is not a lawyer. Keep posted to see why Turner is fighting 'solo' for "the heart of London".

06/06/2015

The unemployment rate in Croatia is one of the highest in Europe. In Hum, the world's smallest city, it's basically zero. Everyone who is of working age has a job. Also, the souvenir shops are employing people around the town since almost everything is really homemade. These beautiful ceramic decorations are an example of this and are made in the kitchen of a friend of the owner - not in China.

04/06/2015

How would you feel if you would see a little five year old climb a human tower of twenty meters high? Frightened or proud? In Catalonia this 200 years old tradition of building human towers is one of the most powerfull cultural traditions that protect the Catalan identity and maintain a strong sense of social cohesion.
But how do these people prepare themselves for this outreageous sport? And Isnt it too dangerous for the little children to climb to the top of the tower?
If you want the answers to these questions you better not lose this page and our Cultour magazine website out of sight!

02/06/2015

The centennial anniversary of the Armenian genocide came and went at the end of April.
Hannah, Cultour's reporter from Canada, travelled to Istanbul in hopes of gathering further insight into current circumstances for Armenian's living in Turkey.
This is Shooshan Kechichian, a mother of two and fundraiser extraordinaire.
In November, Kechichian created a Go Fund Me page to support Gedikpasa "Hrant D**k" Armenian School in Istanbul.
To find out more, stay tuned for Hannah's articles!
http://www.gofundme.com/ggbpm8

02/06/2015

When blindness will open you eyes

Everything is black. Your eyes are opened, but you only see the darkness. There is not even a stream of light you can rely on. That’s the moment when you start to realize how it is to be blind.
One of our reporters visited the Invisible Exhibition in Warsaw. This interactive exhibition will let you experience the everyday life without sight, assisted by a blind guide. Read more about in our magazine soon!

31/05/2015

Stockholm is a deeply segregated city. Some of its suburbs even have between 80 and 90 percent inhabitants with a non-Swedish background who often suffer from daily racism, unemployment and oppression. Some spoken-word poets who live in those Swedish “banlieues” are raising their voices to fight injustice. They form the group Revolution Poetry. And they are being heard. The story will be published in June – get ready.

30/05/2015

For many of us, living in a treehouse has been a childhood dream. Dreams can come true now in Turin, where you can find '25 Verde', an urban treehouse designed by an Italian architect Luciano Pia. About 40% of the apartments of this energy efficient building are still available, so what are you waiting for? Read more about '25 Verde' on our website in June!

29/05/2015

Under the railway in Altantic 18 shopkeepers are facing a possible eviction from their landlord, Network Rail, who wants to "renovate" the arches where their shops are. The traders claim that the renovation work is set to send rents soaring to as much as three times the current rate, which will force them out of the area. Most of them have been there for more than 40 years when when "people wouldn't take a place in Brixton for a pound".

"The traders are the community and we will fight for them to stay". Potent Whisper is a rap singer who just made a song about gentrification in Brixon in Inner London .

One of our reporters has been able to see the results of the campaign "Save Brixton Arches" that tries to stop the evictions. Keep posted to see artists and activists unite their forces to try to help the traiders in a fight that is all over London.

28/05/2015

One of six street bands- Latin Panas giving a crowd stopping performance just off Placa Catalunya in Barcelona.
One of our reporters spoke to the band to find out what it means to them to perform on the streets.

"To be a street musician is different than being a regular musician because on the street you have to catch the audience compared to a bar where they pay for a ticket and they know what they want to hear. On the streets you receive smiles, people dancing, kids dancing, and thats something that is worth a lot"- Richie on Guitar

28/05/2015

Our big launch day is coming closer: We are currently busy finishing our stories and working on the website. Keep your eyes peeled for the 8th of June!