With construction ongoing since 1996, the complex consists of five main areas, of which one (L’Oceanogràfic aquarium) was designed by a different architect.

The Palau de les Arts Reina Sofia contains 4 performance halls for music, theatre and opera in a building that many would consider designed for inter-galactic travel.

Resembling an immense eye to represent visual arts, L’Hemisfèric houses an IMAX theatre, planetarium and Laserium.

Rising behind is the skeletal form of El Museu de les Ciències Príncipe Felipe, a hands-on science museum.

Bordering the decorative pools is L’Umbracle, a landscaped park and sculpture gallery under a network of white arches.

Calatrava’s contributions also include a bridge and central plaza, both of which are currently under construction. However, apartment buildings that were supposed to have been developed in the area have been put on hold for financial reasons.

The forms seen above are reflected in two important buildings on the Atlantic island of Tenerife. The Auditorio de Tenerife on the waterfront of Santa Cruz features a 1600-seat main hall with a pipe organ and a smaller chamber hall, all contained within one of the most amazingly-shaped buildings ever seen.

Also in Santa Cruz, the Tenerife International Centre for Trade Fairs and Congresses features 40,000 square metres of exhibition and meeting space. Thanks to this week’s Street View update, we can also now see it from ground-level.

Another waterfront building can be found by Lake Michigan in the form of the Milwaukee Art Museum which was the first of Calatrava’s projects to be completed in the US. The museum’s main feature is a movable sunshade which can retract in poor weather and at night; it also has a signature cable-stayed bridge.

As with his bridges, not all of Calatrava’s buildings have been popular. The visually stunning Gare do Oriente train station in Lisbon has been criticised for cutting off the city centre from the river, and for not protecting waiting passengers from the elements.

Thanks to the many people who suggested the CAC … paco, Eduardo R. de Lima, Stolz, Arrianus, Carlos Urena, javier, Simone, antonio waller, Sebas Font, Trompie, Michael Zacherl, Pablo, andysamp, Ximet, Andros and Martin.

Locations: Portugal, Spain, Wisconsin / Categories: Buildings, Street Views

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When Street View first launched we posted about this huge Jack-o’-lantern spotted off U.S. Route 287 in Broomfield, Colorado.

Since then somebody found this house on Adams Street¹ in the town of Easthampton, Massachusetts, which has been completely obscured by inflatable Halloween decorations, including a terrifying Tigger, whose frightening visage has been thankfully blurred by Google’s privacy software!

Achieving this level of terrification however, is still a simple matter of inflating some oversized cartoon characters. So you’ve got to take your hat off to whoever scrawled this looming Jack-o’-lantern right in the middle of Highway 51, Wisconsin!

What’s really frightening is that anyone thought that this was a good idea at some point in their drunken evening…

Thanks to Merlin and Virtual Globe Trotting.

Locations: Colorado, Massachusetts, Wisconsin / Categories: Buildings, Street Views

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• Albuquerque, New Mexico
• Anchorage, Alaska
• Austin, Texas
• Cleveland, Ohio
• Fairbanks, Alaska
• Little Rock, Arkansas
• Madison, Wisconsin
• Nashville, Tennessee
• Rockford, Illinois
• Richmond, Virginia
• Spokane, Washington
• St. Petersburg, Florida
• Tampa, Florida

Finally, Google have also added imagery for the few roads that run through Yosemite National Park, California, which enables us to see some pretty stunning scenery.

Here’s El Capitan, a 910 metre vertical rock formation that’s a popular challenge for rock climbers, and some spectacular Giant Redwoods living up to their name!

Read the full story at the Google Lat Long Blog, read more about El Capitan and Giant Redwoods at Wikipedia.

Locations: Alaska, Arkansas, Florida, Illinois, New Mexico, Ohio, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, Washington, Wisconsin / Categories: Natural Landmarks, Street Views

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• Albany and Schenectady, NY
• Boise, ID
• Juneau, AK
• Kansas City, MO
• Manchester, NH
• Milwaukee, WI
• Research Triangle Park (Raleigh, Durham, Chapel Hill), NC
• San Antonio, TX
• Salt Lake City, UT

And presumably just for today (because today is Valentine’s Day in case you’d forgotten), it seems the little Street View guy is standing on a little love heart.

Aww, puke.

Locations: Alaska, Idaho, Missouri, New Hampshire, New York, North Carolina, Texas, Utah, Wisconsin / Categories: Site News, Street Views

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Usually we’d assume that this was a kind message welcoming air passengers to Ohio’s second largest city – but in this particular case the writing is actually in the flight path of the nearby General Mitchell International Airport. That’s the General Mitchell airport, Milwaukee, Wisconsin!

The story goes that one day back in ‘78, Mark Gubin was having lunch on his roof with his assistant, who remarked upon all the low-flying planes – saying how nice it would be to make a sign welcoming everyone to Milwaukee.

Apparently Gubin simply said “You know what would be even better..?”

Thanks to Carson Diltz, oz and Chico Seay. You can read the full story at the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.

Locations: Wisconsin / Categories: Large Type

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I wonder if any of the carnival-goers have noticed?

Thanks: Mike Pegg

Locations: Wisconsin / Categories: Crowds, Stadiums and Sport

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Thanks: Seth.

Locations: Wisconsin / Categories: Buildings

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