1.
Canada
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Canada is a country in the northern half of North America. Canadas border with the United States is the worlds longest binational land border, the majority of the country has a cold or severely cold winter climate, but southerly areas are warm in summer. Canada is sparsely populated, the majority of its territory being dominated by forest and tundra. It is highly urbanized with 82 per cent of the 35.15 million people concentrated in large and medium-sized cities, One third of the population lives in the three largest cities, Toronto, Montreal and Vancouver. Its capital is Ottawa, and other urban areas include Calgary, Edmonton, Quebec City, Winnipeg. Various aboriginal peoples had inhabited what is now Canada for thousands of years prior to European colonization. Pursuant to the British North America Act, on July 1,1867, the colonies of Canada, New Brunswick and this began an accretion of provinces and territories to the mostly self-governing Dominion to the present ten provinces and three territories forming modern Canada. With the Constitution Act 1982, Canada took over authority, removing the last remaining ties of legal dependence on the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Canada is a parliamentary democracy and a constitutional monarchy, with Queen Elizabeth II being the head of state. The country is officially bilingual at the federal level and it is one of the worlds most ethnically diverse and multicultural nations, the product of large-scale immigration from many other countries. Its advanced economy is the eleventh largest in the world, relying chiefly upon its abundant natural resources, Canadas long and complex relationship with the United States has had a significant impact on its economy and culture. Canada is a country and has the tenth highest nominal per capita income globally as well as the ninth highest ranking in the Human Development Index. It ranks among the highest in international measurements of government transparency, civil liberties, quality of life, economic freedom, Canada is an influential nation in the world, primarily due to its inclusive values, years of prosperity and stability, stable economy, and efficient military. While a variety of theories have been postulated for the origins of Canada. In 1535, indigenous inhabitants of the present-day Quebec City region used the word to direct French explorer Jacques Cartier to the village of Stadacona, from the 16th to the early 18th century Canada referred to the part of New France that lay along the St. Lawrence River. In 1791, the area became two British colonies called Upper Canada and Lower Canada collectively named The Canadas, until their union as the British Province of Canada in 1841. Upon Confederation in 1867, Canada was adopted as the name for the new country at the London Conference. The transition away from the use of Dominion was formally reflected in 1982 with the passage of the Canada Act, later that year, the name of national holiday was changed from Dominion Day to Canada Day
2.
New Westminster
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New Westminster is a historically important city in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia, Canada, and is a member municipality of the Greater Vancouver Regional District. Before the settlers arrived from various parts of the world, the now known as New Westminster was inhabited by Qayqayt First Nation. The discovery of gold in B. C. and the arrival of gold seekers from the south prompted fear amongst the settlers that Americans may invade to take over this land. Subsequent to the enactment of the Pre-emption Act of 1860, Moody settled the Lower Mainland and selected the site and founded the new capital, everything is large and magnificent, worthy of the entrance to the Queen of England’s dominions on the Pacific mainland. My imagination converted the silent marshes into Cuyp-like pictures of horses, the water of the deep clear Frazer was of a glassy stillness, not a ripple before us, except when a fish rose to the surface or broods of wild ducks fluttered away. It was suggested by Moody and the Royal Engineers, Columbia Detachment that the site be proclaimed Queensborough, Governor James Douglas proclaimed the new capital with this name on February 14,1859. From this naming by the Queen, the City gained its official nickname, a year later New Westminster became the first City in British Columbia to be incorporated and have an elected municipal government. It became an outfitting point for prospectors coming to the Fraser Gold Rush, as all travel to the goldfield ports of Yale. Moreover, to pay for the expense of building roads into the Interior of the colony, in 1866, the colony of British Columbia and the colony of Vancouver Island were united as British Columbia. Cox then popped the lenses of Franklyns glasses from their frames so that the Nanaimo representative could see nothing at all of his speech, the subsequent vote was 13 to 8 against New Westminster. A smallpox epidemic devastated the New Westminster Band, reducing the members from about 400 people to under 100. Many of the remaining Qayqayt were assimilated into other local reserves and their reserve on Poplar Island was turned into an Aboriginal smallpox victim quarantine area. For decades, the Poplar Island reserve was designated as belonging to all coast tribes, in 1913 the federal government seized most of the New Westminster Bands reserve lands. In 1916 the remaining land on Poplar Island was turned over to the BC government, eighteen years earlier, in 1898, a devastating fire destroyed downtown New Westminster. In 1991, the New Westminster Armoury was recognized as a Federal Heritage building on the Register of the Government of Canada Heritage Buildings, New Westminster is located on the Burrard Peninsula, on the north bank of the Fraser River. It is 19 kilometres southeast of the City of Vancouver proper, adjacent to Burnaby and Coquitlam, a portion of New Westminster called Queensborough is located on the eastern tip of Lulu Island, adjacent to Richmond. The total land area is 15.3 square kilometres, New Westminster has changed markedly over time and by the results of its incorporation into the wider urbanization of the Lower Mainland. In 1878, the Government of Canada opened the British Columbia Penitentiary, BC Pen, or simply the Pen, as it was known, was located between the Sapperton neighbourhood and what is now Queens Park
3.
British Columbia
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British Columbia is the westernmost province of Canada, with a population of more than four million people located between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains. British Columbia is also a component of the Pacific Northwest and the Cascadia bioregion, along with the U. S. states of Idaho, Oregon, Washington and Alaska. The first British settlement in the area was Fort Victoria, established in 1843, subsequently, on the mainland, the Colony of British Columbia was founded by Richard Clement Moody and the Royal Engineers, Columbia Detachment, in response to the Fraser Canyon Gold Rush. Port Moody is named after him, in 1866, Vancouver Island became part of the colony of British Columbia, and Victoria became the united colonys capital. In 1871, British Columbia became the province of Canada. Its Latin motto is Splendor sine occasu, the capital of British Columbia remains Victoria, the fifteenth-largest metropolitan region in Canada, named for the Queen who created the original European colonies. The largest city is Vancouver, the third-largest metropolitan area in Canada, the largest in Western Canada, in October 2013, British Columbia had an estimated population of 4,606,371. British Columbia evolved from British possessions that were established in what is now British Columbia by 1871, First Nations, the original inhabitants of the land, have a history of at least 10,000 years in the area. Today there are few treaties and the question of Aboriginal Title, notably, the Tsilhqotin Nation has established Aboriginal title to a portion of their territory, as a result of the recent Supreme Court of Canada decision. BCs economy is diverse, with service producing industries accounting for the largest portion of the provinces GDP and it is the endpoint of transcontinental railways, and the site of major Pacific ports that enable international trade. Though less than 5% of its vast 944,735 km2 land is arable and its climate encourages outdoor recreation and tourism, though its economic mainstay has long been resource extraction, principally logging, farming, and mining. Vancouver, the provinces largest city and metropolitan area, also serves as the headquarters of many western-based natural resource companies and it also benefits from a strong housing market and a per capita income well above the national average. The Northern Interior region has a climate with very cold winters. The climate of Vancouver is by far the mildest winter climate of the major Canadian cities, the provinces name was chosen by Queen Victoria, when the Colony of British Columbia, i. e. the Mainland, became a British colony in 1858. The current southern border of British Columbia was established by the 1846 Oregon Treaty, British Columbias land area is 944,735 square kilometres. British Columbias rugged coastline stretches for more than 27,000 kilometres and it is the only province in Canada that borders the Pacific Ocean. British Columbias capital is Victoria, located at the tip of Vancouver Island. Only a narrow strip of the Island, from Campbell River to Victoria, is significantly populated, much of the western part of Vancouver Island and the rest of the coast is covered by thick, tall and sometimes impenetrable temperate rainforest
4.
Coquitlam
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Coquitlam /koʊˈkwɪtləm/ is a city in the Lower Mainland of British Columbia, Canada. Coquitlam, mainly a city, is the sixth-largest city in the province and is one of the 21 municipalities comprising Metro Vancouver. The current mayor of Coquitlam is Richard Stewart, the Coast Salish people were the first to live in this area, and archaeology confirms continuous occupation of the territory for at least 9,000 years. The name Kwikwetlem is said to be derived from a Coast Salish term meaning red fish up the river, explorer Simon Fraser came through the region in 1808, and in the 1860s Europeans gradually started settling the area. Coquitlam began as a place-in-between with the construction of North Road in the century to provide Royal Engineers in New Westminster access to the year-round port facilities in Port Moody. The District of Coquitlam was incorporated in 1891, by 1908, a mill town of 20 houses, a store, post office, hospital, office block, barber shop, and pool hall had grown around the mill. A mill managers residence was built that would later become Place des Arts, over the next two years, several contingents of French Canadian mill workers arrived from Quebec, and Maillardville was born. Named for Father Edmond Maillard, a young Oblate from France, maillardvilles past is recognized today in street names, the Francophone education system and French immersion programs, French-language guides and scouts, and celebrations such as Festival du Bois. Following World War II, Coquitlam and the rest of the Lower Mainland experienced substantial growth that continues today. The opening of Lougheed Highway in 1953 made the city more accessible, in 1971, Coquitlam and Fraser Mills were amalgamated, which gave the city a larger industrial base. The mill closed in 2001, and is now rezoned into a residential area, Coquitlam is situated some 10 to 15 km east of Vancouver, where the Coquitlam River connects with the Fraser River and extends northeast along the Pitt River toward the Coquitlam and Pitt lakes. Coquitlam borders Burnaby and Port Moody to the west, New Westminster to the southwest, Burke Mountain, Eagle Ridge, and 1,583 m tall Coquitlam Mountain form the northern boundary of the city. Coquitlams area,152.5 square kilometres, dwarfs the other communities in the Tri-Cities, like Vancouver, Coquitlam is in the Pacific Time Zone, and the Pacific Maritime Ecozone. Coquitlams geographic shape can be thought of as a tilted hourglass and these older residences, with larger property dimensions, are increasingly being torn down and replaced with newer and larger homes. The Austin Heights area contains Como Lake, an urban fishing and recreation area. It also contains Mundy Park, one of the largest urban parks in the Metro Vancouver area, in 1984, the provincial government sold 57 hectares formerly attached to Riverview Hospital to Molnar Developments. Shortly afterward, this land was subdivided and became Riverview Heights, the remaining 240 acres of this still-active mental health facility has been the subject of much controversy between developers, environmentalists, and conservationists. Coquitlam Town Centre, was designated as a Regional Town Centre under the Metro Vancouver’s Livable Region Strategic Plan
5.
Figure skating
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Figure skating is a sport in which individuals, duos, or groups perform on figure skates on ice. It was the first winter sport included in the Olympics, in 1908, the four Olympic disciplines are mens singles, ladies singles, pair skating and ice dancing. Non-Olympic disciplines include synchronized skating and four skating, the blade has a groove on the bottom creating two distinct edges — inside and outside. Judges prefer that skaters glide on one edge of the blade, during a spin, skaters use the sweet spot of the blade, which is the roundest portion of the blade, just behind the pick and near the middle of the blade. Skates used in single and pair skating have a set of large, toe picks are mainly used for the take-off on jumps. Ice dancing blades are an inch shorter in the rear and have smaller toe picks, Figure skaters compete at various levels from beginner up to the Olympic level at local, regional, national, and international competitions. The International Skating Union regulates international figure skating judging and competitions and these include the Winter Olympics, the World Championships, the World Junior Championships, the European Championships, the Four Continents Championships, and the Grand Prix series. The sport is also associated with show business, major competitions generally conclude with exhibition galas, in which the top skaters from each discipline perform non-competitive programs. Many skaters, both during and after their careers, also skate in ice shows which run during the competitive season. The term professional in skating refers not to level but competitive status. Figure skaters competing at the highest levels of competition are not professional skaters. They are sometimes referred to as amateurs, though some earn money, professional skaters include those who have lost their ISU eligibility and those who perform only in shows. They may include former Olympic and World champions who have ended their career as well as skaters with little or no international competitive experience. In languages other than English, Japanese, Korean, Chinese, Italian, Polish and Russian, the most visible difference in relation to ice hockey skates is that figure skates have a set of large, jagged teeth called toe picks on the front part of the blade. The toe picks are used primarily in jumping and should not be used for stroking or spins, if used during a spin, the toe pick will cause the skater to lose momentum, or move away from the center of his/her spin. Blades are mounted to the sole and heel of the boot with screws, typically, high-level figure skaters are professionally fitted for their boots and blades at a reputable skate shop. Professionals are also employed to sharpen blades to individual requirements, Blades are about 3/16 inch thick. When viewed from the side, the blade of a figure skate is not flat and this curvature is referred to as the rocker of the blade
6.
Tallinn
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Tallinn is the capital and largest city of Estonia. It is situated on the northern coast of the country, on the shore of the Gulf of Finland,80 km south of Helsinki, east of Stockholm, from the 13th century until 1918, the city was known as Reval. Tallinn occupies an area of 159.2 km2 and has a population of 444,591, approximately 33% of Estonias total population lives in Tallinn. Tallinn was founded in 1248, but the earliest human settlements date back 5,000 years, making it one of the oldest capital cities of Northern Europe. The initial claim over the land was laid by the Danes in 1219 after a raid of Lyndanisse led by Valdemar II of Denmark. Due to its location, the city became a major trade hub, especially from the 14th to the 16th century. Tallinns Old Town is one of the best preserved cities in Europe and is listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Tallinn is the political, financial, cultural and educational center of Estonia. Often dubbed the Silicon Valley of Europe, it has the highest number of startups per person in Europe and is a birthplace of international companies. The city is to house the headquarters of the European Unions IT agency, providing to the global cybersecurity it is the home to the NATO Cyber Defence Centre of Excellence. It is ranked as a city and has been listed among the top 10 digital cities in the world. The city was a European Capital of Culture for 2011, along with Turku in Finland and it has been suggested that Quwri may have denoted a predecessor of the modern city. The earliest names of Tallinn include Kolyvan, which is known from East Slavic chronicles, up to the 13th century, the Scandinavians and Henry of Livonia in his chronicle called the town Lindanisa (or Lyndanisse in Danish, Lindanäs in Swedish and Ledenets in Old East Slavic. It has been suggested that the archaic Estonian word linda is similar to the Votic word lidna. According to this suggestion, nisa would have the meaning niemi, producing Kesoniemi, another ancient historical name for Tallinn in Finnish is Rääveli. The Icelandic Njals saga mentions Tallinn and calls it Rafala, which is a variant of the name Raphael, after the Danish conquest in 1219, the town became known in the German, Swedish and Danish languages as Reval. The name originated from Revelia Revala or Rävala, the adjacent ancient name of the surrounding area and it is usually thought to be derived from Taani-linn, after the Danes built the castle in place of the Estonian stronghold at Lindanisse. However, it could also have come from tali-linna, or talu-linna, the element -linna, like Germanic -burg and Slavic -grad / -gorod, originally meant fortress, but is used as a suffix in the formation of town names
7.
Sofia
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Sofia is the capital and largest city of Bulgaria. The city has a population of 1.26 million, while 1.68 million people live in its metropolitan area, the city is located at the foot of Vitosha Mountain in the western part of the country, within less than 50 kilometres drive from the Serbian border. Its location in the centre of the Balkan peninsula means that it is the midway between the Black Sea and the Adriatic Sea, whereas the Aegean Sea is the closest to it, Sofia has been an area of human habitation since at least 7000 BC. Being Bulgarias primate city, Sofia is a hometown of many of the local universities, cultural institutions. Sofia is one of the top 10 best places for business in the world. Sofia is Europes most affordable capital to visit as of 2013, for the longest time the city possessed a Thracian name, derived from the tribe Serdi, who were either of Thracian, Celtic, or mixed Thracian-Celtic origin. It seems that the first written mention of Serdica was made during his reign, during the Romans civitas Serdenisium was mentioned the brightest city of the Serdi in official inscriptions. The city was major throughout the past ever since Antiquity, when Roman emperor Constantine the Great referred to it as my Rome, other names given to Sofia, such as Serdonpolis and Triaditza, were mentioned by Byzantine Greek sources or coins. The Slavic name Sredets, which is related to middle and to the citys earliest name, the city was called Atralissa by the Arab traveller Idrisi and Strelisa, Stralitsa or Stralitsion by the Crusaders. The name Sofia comes from the Saint Sofia Church, as opposed to the prevailing Slavic etymology among Bulgarian cities and towns. It is ultimately derived from the Egyptian Kemetic word sbÅ, meaning star, door, teaching and wisdom and this was a tradition of collection of wise literature, shared between Mediterranean cultures, which was called sophia in Greek. In these documents the city is called Sofia, but at the time the region and the citys inhabitants are still called Sredecheski. The city became popular to the Ottomans by the name Sofya. In 1879 there was a dispute about what the name of the new Bulgarian capital should be, the citys name is pronounced by Bulgarians with a stress on the o, in contrast with the tendency of foreigners to place the stress on i. The female given name Sofia is pronounced by Bulgarians with a stress on the i, Sofia has an area of 492 km2, while Sofia City Province has an area of 1344 km2. Sofias development as a significant settlement owes much to its position in the Balkans. It is situated in western Bulgaria, at the foot of the Vitosha mountain, in the Sofia Valley that is surrounded by the Balkan mountains to the north. The valley has an altitude of 550 metres
8.
Richmond, British Columbia
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Richmond is a coastal city incorporated in the Canadian province of British Columbia. Part of the Metro Vancouver area, it has an population of 218,307 people as of 2017. Richmond has an immigrant population of 60%, the highest in Canada, Richmond is the location of Vancouver International Airport and was the site of the long track speed skating events during the 2010 Winter Olympics. Richmond is located on Lulu Island at the mouth of the Fraser River, neighbouring communities are Vancouver and Burnaby to the north, New Westminster to the east, and Delta to the south. The Strait of Georgia forms its western border, Coast Salish bands had temporary camps on the island, to fish and collect berries, which were scattered and moved from year to year. Certain Coast Salish summer camps were located at Garry Point, and Woodwards Landing, along with the site of the Terra Nova cannery, the Township of Richmond was named by Founding Father John Wesley Sexsmith after his birthplace The Township of Richmond, Lennox County, Ontario. The Township of Richmond, Lennox County, Ontario was named for Governor General for British North America, Charles Lennox, 4th Duke of Richmond, Richmond, Yorkshire, the first published reference to “Richmond” was a pamphlet about the local farmstead established on Sea Island by Hugh McRoberts. His daughter chose this name because the view across the Fraser River reminded her of Richmond, north of Sydney, Australia. At the meeting in her home to choose the name Mrs. Hugh Boyd, wife of the first reeve of Richmond, was told that the name came from her birthplace, the Township of Richmond, British Columbia incorporated on November 10,1879. On December 3,1990, Richmond was designated as a City. The first Town Hall, the Agricultural Hall and the Methodist Church, were built at the corner of No.17 Rd and No.20 Rd near the main settlement on the northwestern tip of Lulu Island at North Arm. The old fishing village of Steveston on the tip of Lulu Island is now home to several museums and heritage sites. Currently, London Heritage Farm, the Gulf of Georgia Cannery, Richmond comprises most of the islands in the Fraser River delta, the largest and most populated island being Lulu Island. The city of Richmond includes all but a portion of Lulu Island. The next largest island, Sea Island, is home to the Vancouver International Airport, in addition to Lulu and Sea Islands,15 smaller islands make up the citys 129.66 square kilometres land area. The city also includes the village of Steveston, located in the far southwest corner of the city, and Burkeville. Both Steveston and Burkeville were independent villages until they were annexed by Richmond, the drawback of Richmonds geographical location was that since all the land averages just one metre above sea level, it was prone to flooding, especially during high tide. There is a possibility that, during an earthquake, the dykes could rupture, Richmond is also at risk of a major flood if the Fraser River has an unusually high spring freshet
9.
Colorado Springs, Colorado
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Colorado Springs is a home rule municipality that is the county seat and the most populous municipality of El Paso County, Colorado, United States. Colorado Springs is located in the east central portion of the state and it is situated on Fountain Creek and is located 60 miles south of the Colorado State Capitol in Denver. At 6,035 feet the city stands over 1 mile above sea level, Colorado Springs is situated near the base of one of the most famous American mountains, Pikes Peak, rising above 14,000 feet on the eastern edge of the Southern Rocky Mountains. The city is home to 24 national governing bodies of sport, the United States Olympic Committee and the United States Olympic Training Center. The city had an population of 456,568 in 2015, ranking as the second most populous city in the state of Colorado, behind Denver. The Colorado Springs, CO Metropolitan Statistical Area had an population of 712,327 in 2016. The city covers 194.9 square miles, making it the most extensive municipality in Colorado, Colorado Springs was ranked number five by U. S. News & World Report on the list of 2016 Best Places to Live in the USA. The Ute, Arapaho and Cheyenne peoples were the first to inhabit the area which would become Colorado Springs, part of the territory included in the United States 1803 Louisiana Purchase, the current city area was designated part of the 1854 Kansas Territory. In 1859, after the first local settlement was established, it part of the Jefferson Territory on October 24. Colorado City at the Front Range confluence of Fountain and Camp creeks was formally organized on August 13,1859 during the Pikes Peak Gold Rush. It served as the capital of the Colorado Territory from November 5,1861, until August 14,1862, in 1871 the Colorado Springs Company laid out the towns of La Font and Fountain Colony, upstream and downstream respectively, of Colorado City. Within a year, Fountain Colony would be renamed Colorado Springs, the El Paso County seat shifted from Colorado City in 1873 to the Town of Colorado Springs. On December 1,1880, Colorado Springs expanded northward with two annexations, the second period of annexations was during 1889–90, and included Seaveys Addition, West Colorado Springs, East End, and another North End addition. In 1891 the Broadmoor Land Company built the Broadmoor suburb, which included the Broadmoor Casino, and by December 12,1895, by 1898, the city was designated into quadrants by the north-south Cascade Avenue and the east-west Washington/Pikes Peak avenues. From 1899 to 1901 Tesla Experimental Station operated on Knob Hill, alexander Airport north of the city opened in 1925, and in 1927 the original Colorado Springs Municipal Airport land was purchased east of the city. In World War II the United States Army Air Forces leased land adjacent to the municipal airfield and this was only one of several military presences in and around Colorado Springs during the war. In November 1950, Ent Air Force Base was selected as the Cold War headquarters for Air Defense Command. The former WWII Army Air Base, Peterson Field, which had been inactivated at the end of the war, was re-opened in 1951 as a U. S. Air Force base
10.
The Hague
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The Hague is a city on the western coast of the Netherlands, and the capital city of the province of South Holland. With a population of 520,704 inhabitants and more than one million including the suburbs, it is the third-largest city of the Netherlands. The Rotterdam The Hague Metropolitan Area, with a population of approximately 2.7 million, is the 12th-largest in the European Union and the most populous in the country. Located in the west of the Netherlands, The Hague is in the centre of the Haaglanden conurbation and lies at the southwest corner of the larger Randstad conurbation. The Hague is the seat of the Dutch government, parliament, the Supreme Court, and the Council of State, but the city is not the capital of the Netherlands, which constitutionally is Amsterdam. King Willem-Alexander of the Netherlands plans to live at Huis ten Bosch and works at Noordeinde Palace in The Hague, the Hague is also home to the world headquarters of Royal Dutch Shell and numerous other major Dutch companies. The Hague originated around 1230, when Count Floris IV of Holland purchased land alongside a pond, in 1248, his son and successor William II, King of the Romans, decided to extend the residence to a palace, which would later be called the Binnenhof. He died in 1256 before this palace was completed but parts of it were finished by his son Floris V, of which the Ridderzaal and it is still used for political events, such as the annual speech from the throne by the Dutch monarch. From the 13th century onwards, the counts of Holland used The Hague as their administrative centre, the village that originated around the Binnenhof was first mentioned as Haga in a charter dating from 1242. In the 15th century, the smarter des Graven hage came into use, literally The Counts Wood, with connotations like The Counts Hedge, s-Gravenhage was officially used for the city from the 17th century onwards. Today, this name is used in some official documents like birth. The city itself uses Den Haag in all its communication and their seat was located in The Hague. At the beginning of the Eighty Years War, the absence of city walls proved disastrous, in 1575, the States of Holland even considered demolishing the city but this proposal was abandoned, after mediation by William of Orange. From 1588, The Hague also became the seat of the government of the Dutch Republic, in order for the administration to maintain control over city matters, The Hague never received official city status, although it did have many of the privileges normally granted only to cities. In modern administrative law, city rights have no place anymore, only in 1806, when the Kingdom of Holland was a puppet state of the First French Empire, was the settlement granted city rights by Louis Bonaparte. After the Napoleonic Wars, modern-day Belgium and the Netherlands were combined in the United Kingdom of the Netherlands to form a buffer against France, as a compromise, Brussels and Amsterdam alternated as capital every two years, with the government remaining in The Hague. After the separation of Belgium in 1830, Amsterdam remained the capital of the Netherlands, when the government started to play a more prominent role in Dutch society after 1850, The Hague quickly expanded. The growing city annexed the rural municipality of Loosduinen partly in 1903, the city sustained heavy damage during World War II
11.
The Great Gatsby (2013 film)
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The Great Gatsby is a 2013 Australian-American romantic drama film based on F. Scott Fitzgeralds 1925 novel of the same name. Production began in 2011 and took place in Australia, with $105 million budget, the film follows the life and times of millionaire Jay Gatsby and his neighbor Nick, who recounts his encounter with Gatsby at the height of the Roaring Twenties in New York state. The film polarized critics, receiving praise and criticism for its acting performances, soundtrack, visual style, and direction. Audiences responded much more positively, and F. Scott Fitzgeralds granddaughter praised the film, as of 2016, it is Baz Luhrmanns highest-grossing film, having earned over $350 million worldwide. At the 86th Academy Awards, the won in both of its nominated categories, Best Production Design and Best Costume Design. In 1929, Nick Carraway, a World War I veteran, is receiving treatment for alcoholism at a psychiatric hospital and he talks about Jay Gatsby, the most hopeful man he had ever met. Nicks doctor suggests that he writes his thoughts down, since writing is Nicks passion, in the summer of 1922, Nick moves from the Midwest to New York after abandoning writing. He rents a house in the North Shore village of West Egg, next to the mansion of Gatsby. One day, while Nick has dinner with his cousin, Daisy Buchanan, and her husband, Tom, he is introduced to Jordan Baker by Daisy, who hopes to make a match between them. When Nick returns home, he sees Gatsby standing on the dock, Jordan tells Nick that Tom has a mistress who lives in the valley of ashes, an industrial dumping site between West Egg and New York City. Nick and Tom visit the valley and stop at a garage owned by George Wilson and his wife, Myrtle, later, Nick receives an invitation to one of Gatsbys parties. Upon arrival, Nick learns he is the one to receive an invitation. Nick encounters Jordan, and both meet Gatsby, Gatsby offers Nick a ride to town for lunch. On the way, Gatsby tells Nick he is an Oxford graduate and they go to a speakeasy, where Gatsby introduces Nick to his business partner, Meyer Wolfsheim. Jordan tells Nick that Gatsby had a relationship with Daisy years ago and is still in love with her, Gatsby asks Nick to invite Daisy to tea. After an awkward reunion, Gatsby and Daisy begin an affair, Gatsby is dismayed when Daisy wants to run away with him and wants her to get a divorce. He asks Nick and Jordan to accompany him to the Buchanan home, during the luncheon, Tom becomes suspicious of Gatsby and Daisy, but Daisy stops Gatsby from revealing anything and suggests they all go to the Plaza Hotel. Tom drives Nick and Jordan in Gatsbys car, while Gatsby drives Daisy in Toms car, Tom stops for gas at Georges garage, where George tells him that he and Myrtle are moving and that he suspects Myrtle is unfaithful
