Marseille is full of surprises, or at least that’s the feeling you get when venturing into the city. This gateway to the Mediterranean has much more to offer than what is apparent at first sight. For starters, it has two harbours – the Vieux Port (Old Port), enclosed and fortified, a vestige of times when the coastline was invaded by pirates and hostile nations. And, the new – and larger – harbour which opens out to the sea and is a symbol of contemporary times. The elegant buildings lining the city’s streets have an unkempt, decadent yet inspiring air, while the fishing quarters smack of new trends in the guise of art galleries and cafés, and avant-garde spaces such as the MuCEM (Museum for the Civilisations of Europe and the Mediterranean) and the Villa Méditerranée, attesting to Marseille being much more than just a port city. And, in the midst of all this stands the highlight of this article, one of the works which prompts many architects to pilgrimage to Marseille –Le Corbusier’s Cité Radieuse.

This huge building, recently designated a World Heritage Site by UNESCO, together with 16 other architectural works by Le Corbusier, is one of the essential icons of modern architecture and one of the artificer’s major achievements. In this massive and equally beautiful colossus in concrete, the precursor of Brutalist art and ideologue behind architecture as we know it today successfully shaped the vertical city he had dreamed of, which he named the Unité d’habitation (Housing Unity). This was the first in a succession of similar residential buildings which were subsequently erected in Nantes-Rezé (1955), Berlin-Westend (1957), Briey (1963) and Firminy (1965).

Cité Radieuse, known locally as La Maison du Fada (The Nutter's House), is a large apartment block located in the south of Marseille on the Boulevard Michelet. It was designed in 1945 and built from 1947 to 1952. It is made up of 337 duplex apartments distributed over twelve storeys. Apart from its residential function, Le Corbusier also incorporated amenities into the design, including a commercial area on the seventh and eighth floors, gardens, a paddling pool, a gym, a theatre and a nursery on the spectacular rooftop. The edifice was built in rough-cast concrete and its standout feature are the supporting pilotis or piers, as well as the polychromed decoration on the balconies which set up a rhythm across the facade.

Most of the apartments are now private property, although sightseers are allowed to visit the common areas of the building. On the seventh and eighth floors you can see how most of the commercial units have been turned into design and architects studios. An exception to this is La Ventre de l’Architecte, a luxury restaurant affording splendid views of Marseille and the coast. The crowning touch is provided by another communal area, the rooftop, an area of surprises where architectural forms have been turned into spectacular sculptures affording views over the city. A pilot apartment can be visited as part of a guided tour, but be sure to book in advance with the Marseille Tourist Office. Those who would like to broaden their experience of the Cité Radieuse can stay overnight at the Hotel Le Corbusier, housed in the building itself.

Don’t miss the chance to visit Marseille and its architectural jewel, the Cité Radieuse. Book your Vueling here!

Text and photos by Los Viajes de ISABELYLUIS

If we had to choose the ideal day for visiting Barcelona and seeing it in all its finery, that date would undoubtedly be 23 April. The celebration of the Catalan “Diada de Sant Jordi” (Feast of St George) sees Barcelona festooned with books and roses, and thousands of people crowding the streets in search of new book releases or their favourite author to autograph a copy of their purchase. Roses are also in evidence everywhere, particularly red ones, which all young men are duty bound to gift to their beloved. The ritual is re-enacted year after year and draws numerous booksellers to the city. Following is a list of the main bookshops in Barcelona which you are encouraged to visit on the Feast of St George or, to avoid the crush, any time you happen to be book hunting in Barcelona.

1. Laie
A true beacon of Barcelona’s literary scene and a must-visit destination for any reading enthusiast is Libreria Laie, specialising in art, literature and the humanities. This well managed bookstore also features a café-restaurant on the upper floor, the perfect spot for chatting about the latest literary releases.

2. La Central del Raval
Located in the heart of El Raval quarter, and housed in the former Chapel of Misericordia, is Central del Raval, a classic in the city’s literary scene, boasting some 80,000 titles. Featuring books on anthropology, architecture, design, art, cinema and photography, as well as poetry and the performing arts, among others. Also on the premises is an area devoted to literary activities.

3. Altaïr
Planning to travel anytime soon? Make a point of visiting Librería Altaïr to research your trip beforehand, as there you will find all the books you need to prepare your getaway. They specialise in travel, and as such are one of the largest bookshops in Europe, stocking travel guides, maps and books relating to all possible destinations imaginable.

4. Taifa
Located on the Calle Verdi, in the heart of Gràcia, is the bookstore Librería Taifa. Founded in 1993 by the poet, publisher and literary critic, José Batlló, they stock both new and secondhand books. While specialising in the humanities, the store is noted for its section on cinema, which the proprietors hold in great esteem.

5. Hibernian Books
Also located in the Gràcia  district is Hiberian Books, which is celebrated for being the only store in Barcelona specialising in secondhand books in English. Their list runs into some 40,000 titles, covering all possible genres, including a section featuring children’s books.

6. Loring Art
Loring Art are specialists in contemporary visual culture. The store started out in 1996 with just a hundred titles, while nowadays it has some 20,000, a treat for connoisseurs of this genre. Their offerings provide a journey through 20th- and 21st-century painting, sculpture, design, fashion, photography, architecture, cinema, music, the performing arts and electronic art.

7. Casa Anita
This unique bookshop located in the Gràcia district is dedicated to illustrated books. While targeting primarily children and young readers, their titles are a delight for children and adults alike.

8. Arkham Comics
This small bookshop in El Raval specialises in comics. Although it can be challenging to jostle your way among so many volumes, this is the perfect place for devotees of graphic novels, who are urged to take the advice of Xavi, the ever-helpful owner.

Book your Vueling to Barcelona and delve into the city’s literary world, as well as revelling in one of the city’s most becoming festivities.

Text by Los Viajes de ISABELYLUIS

Celebrate Halloween in one of the cities that we suggest in this post. If you love dark tourism and all things spooky, don’t miss these fang-tastic plans for 31 October (and the days around it!).

It is rare to find this kind of buildings in Germany, a country as jealous of its harmonic architecture. Even more in a town like Brunswick (Braunscheweig), located in Lower Saxony, just over 20 kilometers from Hannover.

Brunswick was a great example of this architectural consistency with old postwar buildings and characteristic half-timbered, forming a homogeneous whole.

Until the Happy Rizzi House stood in the historic heart, a five-storey building that contrasts sharply with the other buildings. This is a great work of modern art, full of smiling faces brightly colored, bug-eyed, crazy shapes and asymmetrical forms. Such a psychedelic collage!

Its construction on land that used to be part of the stables and fields of a Ducal Palace, so close to the church of Saint Andrews, caused much controversy and rejection in this population at the beginning. However, its construction continued starting in 1999 and it took two years to complete.

The funny thing is that, once the initial shock, most of the citizens of Brunswick came to love this "happy home" and now would be unwilling to demolish any way. And, to Brunswick, many tourists come just to observe its facade; not inside, which are labor offices, that can not be visited.

The idea came after a conversation of James Rizzi, New York artist and pop art exponent, with Jäschke Olaf, owner of the Aeschke gallery inBrunswick. They had already collaborated in the past but never to undertake a work of such magnitude.

Unfortunately, Rizzi died in late 2011. He was a beloved artist in Germany due to his work left and for his work with charities. Her hallmark were hi of three-dimensional paper sculptures, with prints of children's characters and vivid colors. These designs became translate into everyday objects, from small labels to larger works as a Volskswagen Beetle, trains and even aircraft.

But happy house is surely his most voluminous work, that will make you crack a huge smile when you see it.

Address of the Happy Rizzi House: Ackerhof 1 Braunschweig

Happy Rizzi House por Gerd Evermann | Boing 757 por Gero Brandenburg | Happy House por Magnus Manske | James Rizzi por Alexander Lieventhal

Why not take a trip to Hannover? Have a look at our flights here!