One of the greatest human achievement is their abilities to preserve knowledge, and utilizing that knowledge to create tools. If you are fascinated by how humans can not only mine their knowledge but also can store and find them efficiently, libraries must be a sanctuary for you. Even when you’re not a bookworm, visiting libraries is a one-of-a-kind experience as it tends to leave you in awe, like looking at Nature’s untouched beauty. Want to know what are the libraries across the globe to visit before you die? Here are some:
The Admont Library in Admont, Austria
The Admont library is a library so beautiful you’ll think it comes straight from the Harry Potter universe. Its beauty is divine and magical. The ceilings of Admont Library features a painting by Bartolomeo Altomonte, showing stages of human knowledge, from the scientific knowledge to the divine revelation.
The admont library was built in 1776 with a 70 meters long hall hosting 200.000 volumes of books. Enough books to read for a lifetime!
Stuttgart City Library in Stuttgart, Germany
If the Admont Library is a gift from the old time, Stuttgart City Library is a gift from the modern time for our future generation. Opened in 2011, Stuttgart City Library is a cube-shaped, nine stories tall library that’s painted in a uniform pure-white paint. The only color you’ll see when you enter the libraries are from the books and people.
Even with all the modern touch and feel you’ll see in Stuttgart City Library, you’ll not feel less awe when you get in this library.
Musashino Art University Library in Tokyo, Japan
Musashino Art University Library is designed to be the simplest library in the world. It is only made from bookcases and glass exterior. Almost all walls in Musashino Art University Library is made of a 6 meters tall bookshelves. Because it is only built with bookshelves and glasses, you could even see the interior of the library from the outside, usually stunning people with its magnificent scene.
Musashino Art University Library was designed by a Japanese architect, Sou Fujimoto who said that you’ll only need books, shelves, light, and beautiful places to built a great library. And he is, indeed, right.
Alexandria Library in Alexandria, Egypt
The Alexandria Library we are talking about is the one you read and learn about in your history lesson. It is the library that was established in the third century B.C., and was the most significant library in the ancient world said to be holding all of the world’s knowledge at the time. Tragically, the Alexandria Library was destroyed in the third century A.D, taking countless of precious books and scrolls with it.
The rich history and heritage of the library was what triggered the creation of the new Alexandria Library in 2001. The new library is located on the shore of the Mediterranean Sea in the Egyptian city of Alexandria, hosting not only books, but also serving an Internet Archive to take the openness spirit of the Alexandria Library to the modern time.
So, does the four libraries we introduce to you pique your interest in visiting them? If so, you should start planning to visit one or some them on your next vacation. For your comfort, you could book your flight ticket and hotel using online services such as Traveloka. Using Traveloka for flight tickets booking is really easy and will save you a lot of headache because there’s a lot of easy features such as price comparison to help you.
So what are you waiting for? Go get your tickets and hotel reservation now!
