Content #689: Sun Island near Harbin, China

Starting January 5th, the Harbin International Ice and Snow Sculpture Festival is an annual festival that takes place in Harbin, China.

There are two main exhibition areas – one is Sun Island that was the location of this week’s contest.

Found the island in the river:

  • Lighthorse
  • Eloy Cano
  • hhgygy
  • Garfield
  • Martin de Bock
  • Paul Voestermans

After the hint:

  • Phil Ower
  • Graham Hedley

Contest #688: Mauro Fencing Academy, Houston, TX, USA

Houston, Texas celebrated “Mauro Hamza Day” on December 26th, 2009. This was the rather obscure holiday chosen for this week.

Mauro Hamza is originally from Cairo, Egypt, and established his fencing academy in Houston – one location can be found in the L-shaped white building. Hamza also served as Fencing Program Coordinator at Rice University from 1998 to 2014 and spent three years serving the Southwest fencing community as volunteer Chairman of the Gulf Coast Division. Mauro was the Egyptian Olympic coach for the men’s and women’s foil teams at the Athens Olympics in 2004 and was the United States Fencing Association Men’s Foil National Coach 2009-2010; then USA Foil Director for Men’s and Women’s National teams in 2010-2011.

There are two locations of the Salle Mauro Fencing Academy in the Houston area.

https://sallemauro.com/

Found in front of the fencing:

  • hhgygy
  • Paul Voestermans
  • Garfield
  • Eloy Cano
  • Glenmorren
  • Phil Ower
  • Lighthouse
  • Martin de Bock

Contest #688 Hint

By now, it might be obvious that the series is for holidays in the week of the contest. This one follows the series theme.

One location established by the person who is celebrated during the week in one US city can be found here. Not surrounded by fencing.

Contest #687: Azad Maidan monument to Goa Liberation Day

This weeks holiday was Goa Liberation Day, celebrated on December 19th for the overthrow the Portuguese in Goa, India. The location visited was Azad Maidan where a monument to the memory of the Indian soldiers who lost their lives during the 36 hour battle.

Found the location pre-hint:

  • Garfield
  • Lighthouse
  • Eloy Cano
  • Paul Voestermans
  • hhgygy
  • Martin de Bock
  • Phil Ower

And after the hint:

  • Robert
  • Robin

And a wave to Gillian B who had the right area, but not the right spot!

Contest #686: the Zamenhof Center in Bialystok, Poland

December 15th was Zamenhof Day, celebrating the inventor of Esperanto, Ludwik Lejzer Zamenhof. Zamenhof was a Jewish ophthalmologist, linguist and the creator of the international language Esperanto, the most widely used constructed international auxiliary language in the world. Zamenhof was born in Bialystok, Poland.

Zamenhof’s goal was to create an easy and flexible language that would serve as a universal second language to foster world peace and international understanding, and to build a “community of speakers”, as he believed that one could not have a language without such a community.

His original title for the language was simply “the international language” (la lingvo internacia), but early speakers grew fond of the name Esperanto and began to use it as the name for the language just two years after its creation. The name quickly gained prominence and has been used as an official name ever since.

The Ludwik Zamenhof Centre is a city cultural institution established in Bialystok at 19 Warszawska St. upon the motion of the President of the City. It was founded to celebrate the organization of the 94th World Congress of Esperanto that was held in Bialystok.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Esperanto

Zamenhof Center:

Ludwik Lejzer Zamenhof:

trovita antaŭ la aludo / before the hint:

  • hhgygy
  • Garfield
  • Eloy Cano
  • Lighthouse
  • Martin de Bock
  • Paul Voestermans
  • Phil Ower
  • Ashwini Agrawal
  • Robert

post la aludo / after the hint:

  • HILDE LAMBEIR
  • Jesus Rodriguez