German Treasure Hunters Reportedly Claim to Know Whereabouts of Russia’s Missing Amber Room
© SPUTNIK/ SERGEY VELICHKIN
German authorities have given a green light for an expedition to a group of treasure hunters who are convinced that the legendary Amber Room of the Russian Tsars that went missing after being looted by Nazi soldiers during World War II lies in one of the caves in the Hartenstein hills, near Dresden, The Daily Mail reported.
German researchers — 73-year-old Leonhard Blume, 67-year-old Guenter Eckardt and 71-year-old Peter Lohr — who claim to know where Russia’s legendary Amber room worth over 266 million dollar is stored started thesearch for it after they were allegedly contacted by a “reliable source”, who informed them on the whereabouts of the treasure.
Lohr said he scanned the soil in the Prince’s cave that was reportedly used by Nazi scientists with radar and found cavities resembling a bunker.
‘The hideout lies underground and above the railway line, where in April 1945 a train from Königsberg was stopped,’ the geo-radar specialist said, cited by the Daily Mail.
‘We discovered on a tree traces where the steel ropes were used to haul up crates. Geo-radar and dowsing measurements reveal a system of secret tunnels beneath the cave system itself,’ his colleague Guenter Eckart added.
Commenting on the expedition, the President of Russia’s State Museum of Fine Arts named after Pushkin, Irina Antonova, noted that reports about the alleged discovery of the Amber Room appear every few months, but if the news is true, then the treasure should be returned to Russia, she argued.The Amber Room was created by German masters for the Prussian King Frederick I, and then presented to Peter I. In 1941, German troops stole the room from the Tsarskoye Selo Palace and took it to Königsberg.
Königsberg which is the historical name for the present-day city of Kaliningrad belonging to Russia, was at that time a part of Germany. The room was reportedly stored in a local castle, but after 1945 disappeared without a trace.
This week, the 3rd edition of MCE South Europe took place in Catania, Sicily, Italy. The forum has been brought to life already 3 years ago to showcase South Europe as a wonderful and resourceful MICE destination. Once more, a rich variety of South European MICE Solution Providers came to the island to represent their destination and build strong relationships with leading event planners keen on finding new business partnership.
This year, the event was hosted at the Four Points by Sheraton Catania Hotel & Conference Center. All participants were welcomed at Catania Fontanarossa Airport by the organizers Europe Congress, the Sicily Convention Bureau and event partner Incoming Italy DMC.
“We at Incoming Italy were excited to welcome all MCE South Europe guests to Sicily. As one of the leading Italian DMCs we are proud to have been part of this prestigious event and are always looking forward to offer a warm experience in our beautiful country. I can’t wait for all event planners and their groups to return to Catania for us to showcase all the fantastic possibilities that this incredible region has to offer.’’ tells Mr. Pedro Marugan from Incoming Italy DMC.
Monday the 9th of October brought business generating pre-scheduled and matchmade B2B meetings, a presentation of all the participating South European destinations and of course a lot of networking activities. For the evening program Il Giardini de Villa Fago, an exceptional venue at the foot of Mount Etna, was chosen. All forum participants were offered a fabulous evening. A welcome reception in the beautiful gardens, a fantastic dinner with opera performances and traditional musicians, topped off by a little after party completed the days success.
Daniela Marino from Sicilia Convention Bureau said “It was a great pleasure and opportunity for us to have MCE South Europe and its participants in Catania, Sicily. We are very proud of the excellent proceedings of the event in which every partner was fully involved to achieve excellence. We hope all participants had the time to discover the beauty of our island and we’re confident to see successful MICE business as the result of it.”
Tuesday saw a keynote performance by event MC, Jonathan Bradshaw, delivering an updated version of his masterpiece: Meetology®: The fascinating psychology powering interpersonal communication. This highly engaging performance was followed by further B2B meetings and networking features as luncheons and coffee breaks. The event was formally closed through short speeches by the Sicily Convention Bureau and the organizing company, Europe Congress.
“The forum in Catania, Sicily was a great success. Together with all involved event partners we have offered all participants a very rich program. We’re happy to have been able to create so many new cooperation’s for new MICE business with South Europe as a destination and will think back with great pleasure about the created experience in Sicily.” Alain Pallas, Managing Director of Europe Congress said.
Riga. 
Vienna, October 2017 – Vienna is absolutely worth a trip. A particularly charming time of year to visit the Austrian capital city is in the winter – when the Christmas markets, the New Year’s Eve Trail and the famous ball season offer the chance to enjoy the cold winter months as a true Viennese local. Also typically Viennese is the five-star-superior hotel Palais Hansen Kempinski; a listed historic building located on the magnificent Ringstraße. The hotel seamlessly combines its rich history with a modern design, and offers an excellent starting point for a tour of wintry Vienna.
Art, culture and cuisine in the imperial city
A waltzing start to the New Year
Since April, a true cosmopolitan, Gerhard Mitrovits, has been the man heading the Palais Hansen Kempinski. The born-and-bred Austrian has been managing hotels in almost every continent for decades and brings extensive experience and new ideas to the hotel on the magnificent Ringstraße. “There is hardly a more exciting address in Vienna, which is modern and traditional at the same time. A contemporary top-class hotel in a historic building, and in addition award-winning cuisine, and a fantastic, young team”, sums up General Manager Gerhard Mitrovits.
About Kempinski Hotels
Artist’s impression of an upcoming YOO Collection property in Asia
oneworld® has been named Best Airline Alliance for the fifth year in a row in the 2017 Business Traveller awards – confirming oneworld’s position as the most highly prized global airline alliance.
Brussels Airport is investing over 52 million euros to equip its Pier B with new boarding bridges and offer greater comfort to passengers. This large-scale project is an important step towards meeting the future demands of its customers, passengers and airlines and preparing for future technological developments in aviation.
Cobalt Air, the Cypriot airline, today (12 Oct) announced a new route from Paphos Airport to Moscow Sheremetyevo Airport as part of its Winter 2017 schedule.
Aeromexico and Japan Airlines (JAL) agreed to launch a codeshare partnership in Japan’s fiscal year 2018, that combines the synergies of both airlines. This alliance will provide a wider connectivity between Mexico and Japan, and through the latter points beyond. This mutual codeshare subject to necessary approvals from authorities, will help to pursue significant cooperation in the near future, allowing to leverage each other’s network, expertise and assets in benefit of their consumers.