If you are desperate to get away from the sweltering heat, take a look at these destinations and get ready to use a blanket at night.

The sea, nature, fishing villages, cities full of monuments, nightlife, valleys and mountains. There are so many reasons to visit Asturias that we have struggled to pick just ten.

The Bauhaus School – from the German bau (construction) and haus (house) – was probably one of the most important and revolutionary driving forces in the 20th century in the fields of art, design and architecture. In the short space of merely 20 years, a team of inquiring artists and architects, influenced by the social movements of the time, managed to overturn the prevailing way of conceiving art and architecture and their relationship to society. Their achievements include laying the foundations for industrial design, graphic design and modern architecture. What’s more, they even put forward and saw implemented an alternative educational model which was ahead of its time. A host of figures succumbed to such innovation and each contributed their grain of sand, including Walter Gropius, Hannes Meyer, Ludwig Mies van der Rohe, Wassily Kandinsky, Paul Klee, László Moholy-Nagy, Marcel Breuer and Lyonel Feininger.

A good way of taking stock of that brilliant past, which we are now so indebted to, is by visiting two cities where the movement was based –Weimar and Dessau.

Weimar – The First Steps

Weimar was the first of three centres of Bauhaus activity. No wonder, then, that this city had already been the hub of the German Enlightenment and a meeting place for intellectuals. The Bauhaus was founded in 1919 by Walter Gropius, who took his first tentative steps in the Haus Hohe Pappeln, a school of arts and crafts designed by a pioneer of modernity, Henry van de Velde.

The only building in the Bauhaus style still standing in Weimar is the Haus am Horn, built in 1923 and designed by Georg Muche, a painter and lecturer at the Bauhaus. The building was designated World Heritage of the 20th Century in 1996.

Located in the Theaterplatz is the Weimar Bauhaus Museum, a moderately sized venue devoted to the Bauhaus. A much more spacious centre is due to be inaugurated in 2018.

Dessau – The Boom

In 1925, Walter Gropius was forced to close the school in Weimar for political reasons, but he received the necessary support to move it to Dessau. Fortunately, in the case of Dessau, there are lots of buildings that have survived to the present, including the school itself, regarded as a masterpiece of European rationalism. When preparing the groundwork for your tour of the various Bauhaus landmarks in the city, we recommend you browse this website to check the times and to book your tickets, as not all the areas are admission free.

Bauhaus Building (Bauhausgebäude).The work of Walter Gropius, this is the most emblematic of the Bauhaus constructions. Built in 1925 and 1926, it is made up of various interconnecting volumes, each with a different function. Building work involved the use of industrial techniques and a striking feature of the design is the glazed frontage.

Masters’ Houses (Meisterhäuser).Located near the school, this ensemble of four residential buildings was home to the masters: Gropius, Moholy-Nagy/Feninger, Muche/Schelemer and Kandinsky/Klee. Their interiors are open to the public, except for that of Gropius, which was destroyed during the war.

Törten Estate. The work of Walter Gropius, this ensemble of 300 houses was built in 1920 in the south of Dessau. Commissioned by the City Council, it is a prototype of a housing estate and was intended to act as a model for social housing.

Kornhaus. More playful in design, this restaurant and pub overlooking the river Elbe was designed by Carl Fieger, a draughtsman in Gropius’ practice.

Berlin was the last of the Bauhaus centres, where it was located from 1932 to 1934. However, the rise of National Socialism would put an end to this brilliant core of creativity and innovation, driving it to other countries, but the mark it left has survived until the present.

From Leipzig it is an easy train ride to both Weimar and Dessau, where you can steep yourself in the Bauhaus. Check out your flight here!

Text by Los Viajes de ISABELYLUIS

Fez, also known as the mazy city of Morocco is one of the country’s most ancient and best-preserved cities, conserving its authenticity and exoticism with a an architecture that has remained practically untouched for centuries. What is perhaps most striking in this North African city is the fact that its less touristy and crowded, especially if you compare it to its neighbour, Marrakech. For this reason, it has a special charm that allows oneself to submerge into the culture of the citizens, without feeling suffocated by the sellers and merchants that often bother travellers in other Moroccan cities.

1.- Medina Fes el-Bali

The highlight of our trip to Fez is precisely in the maze that is made up by more than a hundred districts ofFes el-Bali, that are full of narrow streets with thousands of turning points and dead ends. UNESCO has protected it since 1967, as it is considered the oldest part of the city, which concentrates some of the most important monuments.

In the past, according to the law, each district was obliged to have a mosque, a religious school, a bakery, fountain and hammam. The Mausoleum of Moulay Idris and the Al Karaouine, together with the Koranic schools Attarine and Bou Inania boast an exquisite architecture that deserves to be seen. The latter, Bou Inania can be visited by non-Muslims, with an exception of the prayer rooms.

The Medina Fes el- Jdid or New Medina was raised by the Merindia dynasty in the twelfth century, outside the old town. It is full of mansions with Andalusian patios, gardens, mosques and new souks, but mostly what makes it interesting is the swanky Royal Palace of golden gates, every so often cleaned with a curious mixture of lemon juice, salt and vinegar. The Mellah or Jewish quarter, which stands in the heart of Fes el- Jdid, close to the palace also offers a large market thanks to the Grand Rue, Boulevard Bou Ksissat, contrasting with the of the facades and balconies of traditional Muslim architecture, where privacy reigns.

3.- La Ville Nouvelle

In order to complete our tour of Fez, we must not forget to visit the Ville Nouvelle, the newest part of the city that was built following the French protectionism during the twentieth century. Most urbanites enjoy this area reserved for the more affluent locals, with their walk through the Avenue Hassan II and the Boulevard Mohammed V. There’s an entire collection of glamorous bars with terraces, restaurants, ice cream parlours and bakeries. Boutiques fill the streets of movement and make the Ville Nouvelle an ideal place for the classic mint tea with typical pastries that help regain strength after an afternoon of shopping.

Picture by NaSz451

Text by Blanca Frontera