Alfie Atkins is a fictional character created by the author Gunilla Bergström from Sweden in 1972. In the books Alfie experiences many ordinary everyday events that all kids can easily recognize. In his longing to grow up and be a big boy, Alfie often competes with his father on who can manage these events in the best way. Alfie's father is a nice and positive man. Women appear less frequently in the stories: Alfie has an aunt named Fifi and a grandmother, but no mother is present.
Conrad Lycosthenes was an Alsatian humanist and encyclopedist. He belongs among the numerous polyhistors of the 16th century. He mastered Latin and Greek and was particularly fond of curiosities.
A summer capital is a city used as an administrative capital during heat waves. Sadly, the concept is almost extinct, as air-conditioning systems have reduced the need to periodically relocate to a more temperate city. While artificial cooling of indoor air is a more efficient way of dealing with underarm sweat patches, it comes at the expense of the gorgeous extravagance of moving all political activity across the land you are trying to govern. Notable summer capitals include San Sebastián in the northern part of Spain and Palanga, a Lithuanian seaside town.
Xanadu was the summer capital of Kublai Khan's Yuan Dynasty in China.
Karosta was constructed in 1890-1906 as a naval base for the Russian Tsar Alexander III, and later served as a base for the Soviet Baltic Fleet. When the Russian army left Latvia in 1994 after Latvian independence, Karosta became largely uninhabited and most structures fell to ruin. In the late 1990s, the area was troubled by high unemployment, street crime and drug problems. Some remaining residents are considered neither Latvian nor Russian and hold alien passports.
Jagiellonian University is the oldest of higher education in Poland, the second oldest university in Central Europe and one of the oldest universities in Europe.
The first known vending machine was invented by the Greek engineer and mathematician Hero of Alexandria around 215 BC. These first vending machines were located in Egyptian temples and dispensed holy water in exchange for coins.
Royal Warrants are a mark of recognition to individuals or companies who have supplied goods or services for at least five years to HM The Queen, HRH The Duke of Edinburgh or HRH The Prince of Wales. Warrants have always been regarded as demonstrating excellence and quality, and are highly prized. There are around 850 Royal Warrant Holders representing a huge cross-section of trade and industry. They range from traditional craftspeople to global and multinational firms operating at the cutting edge of technology.
Saints Crispin and Crispinian are the Christian patron saints of cobblers, tanners, leather workers and, since it came into being, of the leather subculture.
Maison Devambez was a fine printer's firm in Paris. At first the firm specialized in heraldic engraving, engraved letterheads and invitations. Devambez clients included the House of Orléans, the House of Bonaparte and the Élysée Palace. Long-established as a printer, Devambez only ventured into book publishing at the start of the twentieth century, printing books on Edgar Allan Poe, Laurence Sterne, and others. Today, they exclusively make...rolling papers.