Transylvania by Mathieu Le Lay

Mathieu’s passion for cinema & nature guided him to perform a year of study at IFFCAM, the French wildlife film school, after he graduated in wildlife conservation at Salford university (UK).

Since 2008, he is directing films to tell stories about his fascination for strong interactions between man and the wild environment.

The documentary film genre allows him to stage his characters playing at their own role, adopting a more intimate approach when filming on the field. He also looks for personal aesthetics & evocative atmosphere in his visual style & cinematography.

More info: www.mathieulelay.com

Golden Sea of Canola Flowers in Luoping, China

In early spring t you can witness an amazing “Golden Sea” of canola flowers. The canola flower fields in China are one of the world’s beautiful sight’s in small Luoping (Yunnan, China). Vast farmlands get covered in golden, yellow rapeseed flowers stretching as far as the eyes can see, all the way to the horizon. The best time to visit Luoping for this visual fiesta is February through March, by June the show is over.

Natural wonders - Turda Salt Mine Romania

Turda Salt Mine, aside from its gigantic size, is fairly straight forward in its history. Explosives were never used to hollow the mine, and it was all done by hand or machine, making its size more impressive. One of the many halls of the mine measures a massive 260 by 130 feet with 160-foot ceilings.

After being abandoned in 1932, the mine reopened for tourists in 1992. Thanks to a $6 million renovation, the Salt Mine is now a large tourist draw for halotherapy, a treatment for allergies and asthma that uses the ionized air, pressure and humidity of the caves. The effects of salt caves were first discovered during a study of miners with improved breathing ability in the Wieliczka Salt Mine.

Along with the spa attraction inside the caves, some of the old mining equipment has been converted to lead visitors through on tours. One of the most prominent features is a panoramic wheel that lets tourists see the stalagmites that have formed over the caves 1000-year history. A small lake in the mine also offers the opportunity to paddle around the highly textured salt caves.

As the cave has grown in popularity over the last 20 years, it has attracted a number of high-profile visitors. Rumors have even circulated over the last few months that the new Christopher Nolan-directed Batman film will be shot heavily in the mine, with Turda acting as the new Batcave. On opening night, moviegoers should look for Turda Salt Mines characteristic old mining equipment and damp, cavernous surroundings.

Merry Cemetery - Romania

The Merry Cemetery (Romanian: Cimitirul Vesel pronounced is a cemetery in the village of Săpânța, Maramureş county,Romania. It is famous for its colourful tombstones with naive paintings describing, in an original and poetic manner, the persons that are buried there as well as scenes from their lives. The Merry Cemetery became an open-air museum and a national tourist attraction.

The unusual feature of this cemetery is that it diverges from the prevalent belief, culturally shared within European societies – a belief that views death as something indelibly solemn. Connections with the local Dacian culture have been made, a culture whose philosophical tenets presumably vouched for the immortality of the soul and the belief that death was a moment filled with joy and anticipation for a better life.