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Amusement
Parks  |
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On the shores
of the Adriatic the history of man and the sea can be found
Discovering
"Le Navi" in Cattolica
Education
and amusement are found in an initiative for children and parents
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the
Auditorium, where Aran switches a prodigious time machine
which shows images taking us back to the origins of the
Earth: from the Big Bang to the formation of planets and of
the solar system, to the first atmospheric phenomena; from
the evolution of life to the appearance of homo sapiens, to
the present days. "Le Navi" was created by means
of the reclamation of one of the many holiday homes of the
Adriatic area. The dining hall of one of these structures
was used by designers to build a large, round aquarium where
Bull Sharks, Host Sharks and White Sharks swim in 700,000
litres of water. Hence the name of this place, "Sharks’
Tank". Further on the Acquapolis is met. This is the
reign of marine fauna and flora, where new, interesting
situations are presented to visitors. Finally, the highly
interesting scenery of Archeopolis, where marine archaeology
illustrates the discovery of our origins. An educational
centre operates in the park for the benefit of schools.
The park is open from 10:00 to 18:00 until June, and from
10:00 to 24:00 from June to September. Admittance fees are
30,000 lire for adults, and 23,000 lire for visitors
over-65. School-group members pay 23,000 lire each, with a
free ticket every twenty students. An extra advantage for
visitors is being on the Adriatic sea. |
A
total area of 110,000 sq.m., a green area of 49,000 sq.m., covered
pavilions totalling 18,000 sq.m.; these are the most significant figures
of the "Le Navi" ("The Ships") park in Cattolica, on
the Adriatic sea.
The park can be reached by train (Cattolica station), and then by the bus
linking the railway station to the park. As an alternative, visitors can
reach it by car or bus from the Motorway 14, exit Cattolica San Giovanni
Gabicce, or by plane to the Bologna, Rimini or Ancona airports.
"A positive year 2000": this was the comment of the park’s
managements regarding the results of the past season. Forecasts for the
coming summer are even more optimistic. New Year’s Eve marked the start
of the year 2001 and the tourist season will be here soon. The Cattolica
park offers three "theme routes" and |
was
conceived as a real journey: a fascinating itinerary which
takes visitors from the surface into the abyss to a depth of
3,200 meters, then rises again and emerges from the sea. As
in all journeys, a guide will take care of visitors. Thanks
to technology two virtual guides, professor J. J. Jonas and
the mascot Aran will brighten the tour. The two friends, one
serious and didactic, the other friendly and amusing, will
appear on monitors, maxi-screens and virtual windows placed
along the way.
The tour starts with Geopolis, a route dedicated to the
formation of the Universe and, in particular, of the Earth
and the seas. Thanks to virtual effects, visitors in a lift
will have the impression of navigating in the abysses.
Another surprise for visitors is the Monitoring Room, where
images taken in various parts of the world are broadcast. In
this sections hazardous situations for the Earth are
presented: pollution, deforestation and industrialization.
The journey then continues in
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Age-Infotoys.it
Deal
An agreement
has been reached between AGE (Association of Italian Parents)
and Infotoys.it. The agreement promotes the development of
initiatives aimed ad introducing children to the Internet
world in a proper and structured way. AGE has recognized the
role of Infotoys as a portal which can be recommended for
children, thus granting it a sort of "quality
certificate". Infotoys intends to promote, together
with AGE, a series of meetings in which toys will be
introduced from the point of view of their educational value.
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58%
of children are TV-addicts
58 children
out of 100 often watch television as their only alternative.
Half of the children have a TV set in their rooms and often
watch programmes unsupervised by their parents. These
figures have been compiled following a research by the
Italian Paediatric Society. The study also disclosed that
52.9% of the children habitually surfs the Internet and does
so mainly in the evening. Finally, many children watch TV
because they lack company.
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"Games
& Toys":
a look at infotoys.it
Title:
"infotoys, games (and more) on the web.
The Sfera Review publishes an interview with
Maurizio Piola, managing director of the portal. The
article introduces the initiatives and the programmes
of the new product, whose aim is communication between
producers, retailers, families, associations, leisure
organizations and, of course, everybody playing games.
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"The
innocent look":
a great success in Brescia.
A large
public, especially young people, has appreciated the
successful exhibition "The Innocent Look: Art,
Childhood, and the 1900s"  held
in Brescia from May 12th to November 5th 2000. The
exhibition featured incredible works of art of
children from all over the world, placed side by side
with the refined masterpieces of 20th Century artists,
among whom Picasso, Klesyk, Lee and Kandinsky. Reviews
were extremely favourable, but even more interesting
were the comments written down by youngsters in the
Visitors’ Book. Two examples: ‘Puffing clouds,
coloured glass, today I’m happy’ writes Julia at
the end of her visit, whereas Maria, 12, comments ‘Extra-beautiful,
the most beautiful exhibition I have ever seen’. The
show was sponsored by the High Patronage of the
Presidency of the Republic, the UNICEF, the Ministry
for European Community Policies and the Ministry for
Cultural Activities. Other sponsors were the Lombardy
Regional government and the National Committee for the
year 2000 Jubilee.
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