park

China’s largest solar park is doing much more than generating energy: it’s greening a desert

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more than a year ago we had in Xataka how a huge solar park in the Chinese province of Qinghai, in the heart of the Tibetan plateau, served as an ecological experiment: under the panels, the shade retained moisture and made vegetation sprout in the middle of the desert. Now, that same place – the Talatan Solar Park – has become something much bigger. It is the largest clean energy facility on the planet, a “blue sea” of silicon that already covers more than 600 square kilometers at three thousand meters above sea level. Where before there was nothing, China is lifting an energy ecosystem without comparison in the rest of the world. The scale has multiplied. Where last year there was talk of a 1 gigawatt solar park, today a complex extends that reaches 15,600 and 16,900 megawatts and continues to expand. Its area – between 420 and 610 square kilometers – is seven times that of Manhattan. Furthermore, it is not alone since 4,700 megawatts of wind energy and 7,380 megawatts of hydroelectric dams are deployed around it, completing an unprecedented hybrid system. The result: enough renewable energy to supply almost all of the plateau’s needs, including the data centers that power China’s artificial intelligence. According to CleanTechnicaevery three weeks China installs as many solar panels as the entire capacity of the Three Gorges Dam, the largest hydroelectric project in its history. A global clean energy laboratory. The Tibetan plateau, with its pure, cold air, has become the most ambitious energy laboratory in the world. There, China is experimenting with an electricity production model based exclusively on renewables. Electricity generated in Qinghai—40% cheaper than coal, according to the NYT— powers high-speed trains, factories, electric cars and data centers. In fact, the region is home to new computing centers dedicated to artificial intelligence, which consume less energy thanks to the altitude and low temperatures. “Hot air from servers is used to heat other buildings, replacing coal-fired boilers,” explained Zhang Jingang, vice provincial governor. In the words of Professor Ningrong Liu, in his column for the South China Morning Post: “China is not only leading the transition to green energy; it is building the 21st century energy scaffolding that sustains its industrial leadership in electric vehicles, batteries and solar technology.” Three sources that beat in unison. The magnitude of the project is only possible thanks to centralized planning that combines three main sources: solar, wind and hydroelectric energy. During the day, Talatan panels capture more intense solar radiation than at sea level; At night, thousands of wind turbines collect the cold breezes that sweep across the plains. When both systems fluctuate, hydroelectric dams balance the grid. Also, from the New York Times They described a system reversible pumping: excess solar energy during the day is used to raise water to reservoirs located in nearby mountains, which release that water at night to generate electricity. And under the panels, life returns. The shade of the plates reduces evaporation and soil erosion. According to China Dailythis year the vegetation has recovered up to 80% and 173 villages have benefited from the associated livestock farming. A local shepherd, Zhao Guofu, said: “My flock has grown to 800 sheep and my income has doubled since I grazed between the panels.” The perfect geography for the sun. No other country has taken solar generation to similar altitudes. The altitude plays in favor of physics, at 3,000 meters the air contains fewer particles that block light and the low temperatures reduce the thermal loss of the panels. This efficiency is multiplied in Qinghai, one of the few areas of the Tibetan plateau with large plains, where it is possible to build without the limits of the mountainous relief. The Talatan Desert, once an arid and worthless land, has become an energetic jewel. local authorities offer symbolic leases and have developed roads and high-voltage lines connecting the plateau with the industrial centers to the east. That energy travels more than 1,600 kilometers to factories and cities. According to CleanTechnicaChina already operates 41 ultra-high voltage transmission lines, some longer than 2,000 miles and up to 1.1 million volts. The global scale: no one comes close. Other countries have tried to generate clean energy at altitude, but with modest results. Switzerland, for example, inaugurated a small solar park in the Alps, at 1,800 meters, with barely 0.5 MW. For its part, in the Chilean Atacama Desert, a 480 MW project operates at 1,200 meters. By way of comparison, the Talatan complex multiplies the capacity of the Bhadla Solar Park in India, and for more than seven that of the Al Dhafra Solar Park in the United Arab Emirates, which until recently held records. The superpower of clean energy. China produces and consumes more renewable energy than any other country on the planet. In 2024, was responsible of 61% of new solar installations and 70% of global wind power. That same year, it achieved the capacity targets it had set for 2030. In the first six months of 2025added 212 GW solar and 51 GW wind, and the country’s carbon emissions fell for the first time. In this context, Talatan Park is both a symbol and an infrastructure. China is exporting its renewable technology around the world, from Asia to Africa, following the logic of Belt and Road Initiative. For the academic Ningrong Liu: “China wants to stop being the world’s factory to become the engine of the world’s factory.” It is not just about manufacturing panels, but about selling the complete model: engineering, financing and know-how to build green networks in other countries. The less visible side of the miracle. It’s not all clean energy and pastoral harmony. In its report, The New York Times recalled that access to Tibet remains strictly controlled by the Communist Party, and that Western media were only allowed to visit Qinghai on a government-organized tour. There are also human and environmental costs. CleanTechnica documents how the giant power lines that transport energy … Read more

charges every time someone enters a Universal park

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In 1987, while Warner Bros. was trying to sign him to make films for it (something that would not come until the 2001 Amblin co-production ‘AI’), Steven Spielberg signed a deal with Universal that had nothing to do with film. Decades later, that Creative Consultant contract in theme parks brings him more money than any of his films and has gone down in history as one of the most lucrative in the history of entertainment. And the best: it has no expiration date. The origin of the contract. In 1987, Universal Studios didn’t have the money to compete with Warner. What it did have was Sid Sheinberg, the president of MCA, Universal’s parent company, who had been betting for years on a young director whom he had signed when he was barely a teenager and for whom the director had provided hits like ‘Jaws’ or ‘ET the Extraterrestrial’. When Warner launched a financial offensive to snatch up Spielberg, Sheinberg improvised a cashless solution: making his star director a creative consultant for the theme parks Universal planned to build, with a share of the gross receipts. Forever. ELON MUSK VS JEFF BEZOS: STAR WARS How was it known? For two decades, the terms of the agreement were known only to a small circle of lawyers, but came to light thanks to a footnote in the financial documents that Universal presented in 2009, in the midst of the economic crisis. It was then known that Spielberg perceived 5.25% of all gross revenue generated by the two parks built after the signing (Orlando and Japan), an amount valued at up to 70 million dollars annually (approximately 120 dollars per ticket, 2.38 dollars for each ticket sold) and that It later spread to Singapore and Beijing.. Universal Studios Hollywood was excluded because the park already existed before the initial agreement. It doesn’t stop, it doesn’t stop. The key term here is “in perpetuity”: no expiration date. The original text included a clause granting Spielberg 2% of all box office grosses and a portion of concessions, in perpetuity. These are not royalties linked to a specific film or a specific attraction. Spielberg charges for each ticket sold at the parks covered by the agreement, regardless of whether any of his films have a presence there. The financial crisis of the late 2000s put Universal in an uncomfortable position. The agreement included a clause allowing Spielberg to demand a final payment and terminate the contract, which he did. The figure was estimated to be around $200 million. But the studio was building The Wizarding World of Harry Potter and could not afford that payment. Spielberg agreed to postpone it until June 2017 in exchange for an increase in his share from 2% to 5.25% of gross receipts, just as the opening of the Harry Potter zone promised to skyrocket attendance. In 2017 he agreed to continue collecting royalties. Other cases. Spielberg’s deal with Universal has no direct equivalent in the industry. Perhaps George Lucas’ situation with the ‘Star Wars’ franchise, which sold to Disney in 2012 for $4 billionis comparable, but it is still a simple sale of rights. In other words: no matter how much the franchise films make now, Lucas receives nothing. Of course, Spielberg was very smart there: the opening of Epic Universe in Orlando in May 2025 adds a new source of gross revenue to which Spielberg is entitled under his contract. According to the latest estimatesif visitor volume reaches projections from previous expansions, the director’s annual revenue could exceed $100 million over the next few years. What I said: a great business. Image | William Warby

A plant was on the verge of extinction in the Mojave Desert. So they built a solar park on top

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The Mojave Desert is not only a paradise when it comes to filming movies, setting video games and name operating systems: It is also home to thousands of plant species that are accustomed to an extremely hostile climate. It is estimated that there are about 2,000 species and a very specific one is in danger of extinction. Until they decided to build one of the largest photovoltaic plants in the United States on top of it. The Gemini Solar Project. In short. The journal Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution revealed a few weeks ago the results of a curious study. The ‘threecorner milkvetch’ plant (which has a name for everything except a plant) went from 12 specimens in the Mojave Desert to 93. This plant was being evaluated for inclusion in the Endangered Species Act in the United States and not only has its number multiplied: the new plants are larger and produce more flowers. And they have “only” had to build one of the largest photovoltaic plants in America on top of it, next to Guanchoi in Chileto achieve it. Threecorner milkvetch. It is a creeping plant that has curious needs: it only grows in sandy soils of the Mojave Desert. However, it is dependent on rainfall because its seed remains dormant in the soil and only germinates and reproduces with favorable rainfall. In dry years, it remains completely unnoticed, waiting for a little rain. And it is so rare that the species remains under evaluation for status as threatened or endangered under U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service regulations. In the same desert there is another threatened species: the desert tortoise Gopherus agassizii. The habitat of the two species should be the last one on which it would be decided to build a photovoltaic plant, but there is the Gemini Solar Project. The plant Megaplant. When such an installation is to be carried out in the desert, a technique known as clearing and leveling is used. In essence, all vegetation is removed, the land is leveled and prepared for install the pillars of the solar panels. Not only is a lunar landscape created, but any type of latent seed beneath the surface, such as that of the threecorner milkvetch, is destroyed. However, the Gemini Solar Project’s approach was different. The company wanted the land because it is especially ‘fertile’ within the US to harvest sunlight, but concessions had to be made. One was to minimize the alteration of the habitat of both species to conserve the desert surface with all its biological resources, preserve the topsoil and adapt the facility to the natural relief. On the US Geological Survey website we can see photos of little turtles between the panels. Works. This is part of what we know as ‘ecovoltaics’, with a branch called ‘agrovoltaics’ that we have also talked about and that, although it can be used by companies as a facelift, it serves to unite energy activities with agricultural activities. In the study on the impact of the Gemini Solar Project and the evolution of the plant, researcher Tiffany Pereira discovered what we have mentioned: there were more plants and they were healthier. This showed that the energy company had done its part by not destroying the soil because the seeds had been able to germinate, but they found something else. The plants inside the installation evolved earlier than those outside it and grew not under the panels, but in the strips between the rows. This implies that they still need intense sunlight to mature. The yellow zone is where the Sun shines the most hours. The blue one is the stripe that varies depending on the position of the Sun. The red one is where direct light never shines. Okay, but then… what is the role of the panels in the improved evolution of these plants? The hypothesis used by the researchers is that the panels provide partial shade on the groundslowing down evaporation. We have already said that seeds are dormant until they have the necessary humidity conditions to germinate, and in this context, a more humid microclimate has allowed plants to grow more and produce more seeds. Not all the field is oregano. Now, like almost every scientific study, we look at the other side of the coin. The rainfall in recent years has been favorable and we will have to see what happens with periods of prolonged drought. In a few years we could talk about long-term effects. But, in addition, this absence of plants under the panels could indicate a possible loss of potential habitat in very humid years. In any case, Pereira’s study is not isolated. Other studies point to improvements in both the number of flowering plant species and pollinators in agrovoltaic installations in a state like Minnesota. AND in China there are also indicators that those photovoltaic plants in deserts is contributing to the moisture pocket construction in which plants can thrive more easily. As we said, it remains to be seen the impact of the panels on the creation of a “new” biodiversity in the long term, but for now, what is evident is that it is not necessary to raze land to build a photovoltaic plant. Images | DRI, Tiffany PereiraGemini Solar Project In Xatka | The biggest fiasco of solar energy is in the Nevada desert: it is useless and its promoter blames a Spanish company

Saudi Arabia just opened a $1 billion theme park with a 4.2 km roller coaster and 160 m drop

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The Formula Rossa of the Ferrari World Abu Dhabi, in the United Arab Emirates, has just been dethroned a few days ago. podium of the most spectacular roller coasters in the worldand with a drop of 127 meters and up to 240 kilometers/hour as top speed, these were shocking figures. But you don’t have to go far to find the new queen: it’s called Falcon’s Flight and it’s the jewel in the crown of the astronomical amusement park in Qiddiya City, in Saudi Arabia, which has just opened its doors. The first Six Flags outside North America. Six Flags Qiddiya City is a massive 320,000 square meter amusement park located on a mountainous desert cliff just outside Riyadh. It has 28 attractions, of which five break records as we will see. Likewise, it is the first of the franchise outside the United States, Canada and Mexico, but despite the distance from the parent company, it is a full-fledged Six Flags respect to brand standards. The person who has provided the more than one billion dollars necessary to pay for the project is the Public Investment Fund (PIF), the kingdom’s sovereign investment fund. Behind him, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, with a very specific goal: diversify the country’s economy, thus reducing the weight of oil. The park It is one of the five gigaprojects of Saudi Vision 2030its roadmap for diversification into emerging sectors such as tourism and entertainment. Falcon’s Flight shatters all records. The technical sheet of the Six Flags attractions in Riyadh leaves milestones such as the Sirocco Tower, the tallest free fall tower (145 meters); the Gyrospin, which by rising 53 meters has become the highest pendulum in the world or the Iron Rattler, the type roller coaster. tilt highest on the planet (63.4 meters), but if there is one that leaves your mouth open, it is Falcon’s Flight. We are facing the highest, fastest and longest roller coaster in the world. It is capable of reaching 250 km/h, rises up to 195 meters high and uses the edge of the Tuwaiq cliff to achieve a vertical drop of 158 meters. 4.2 kilometers long to trigger the adrenaline during the almost four minutes it lasts. This is the awesome Falcon’s Flight. Grantime, Wikimedia The impressive figures of Six Flags Qiddiya City. As Abdullah al-Dawood, CEO of Qiddiya Investment Company, explained, in a local programthey expect the project to generate 7,000 jobs and provide some $686 million to the kingdom’s GDP this year. According to its forecasts, these figures will increase to 85,000 employees and 11,733 million US dollars (at the exchange rate) and will attract 48 million visitors a year by 2030, as the project moves through phases. Much more than an amusement park. Literal. The Six Flags Qiddiya City opened on December 31, 2025 for the New Year, at which time it opened its doors to the general public who came and shelled out the $87 adult admission fee. Although the park is already open, from now until 2030 the project will expand to the environment by building transport infrastructure, the imminent Aquarabia water park, large-scale sports facilities such as a Formula 1 circuit, a stadium for the World Cup, cultural areas such as a performing arts center and residential areas. The amusement park is just the tip of the iceberg. With the fall in oil prices in recent years, the Saudi authorities have had to recalibrate plans and review their budgetary priorities, with unavoidable events on the horizon such as the Expo 2030 or the 2034 FIFA World Cup. In addition, several gigaprojects such as the futuristic city of Neom have suffered delays and cost overruns. Qiddiya has also suffered delays, but with the Six Flags Qiddiya City as the first operational asset in the macrocity, those responsible they are optimistic in its objective of attracting tourists. In Xataka | Saudi Arabia wants to become a world tourism power. First you have to fix something: the alcohol In Xataka | Saudi Arabia’s impossible bridge to join Africa and Asia: a 32-kilometer megastructure over the Red Sea Cover | Quiddiya

a “Made in Europe” label to park wherever you want

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Paris is the most striking case because it has taken it to the extreme. The city has a very simple system to reduce the volume of cars on its most central streets: that you pay 18 euros to leave the car on the street. It doesn’t matter if it is electric or combustion, the intention is to punish parking to reduce car trips. The fee is paid by weight of the vehicle, so SUVs are the most punished. The Parisian idea has been replicated in Spain in one way or another. In Madrid, for example, parking a car in its most central streets has a price if it is labeled B or C: 200 euros fine. And the capital does allow access to the streets that previously formed Madrid Central but it is mandatory that, with these labels, the car passes through a parking lot. If you park on the street, the fine is guaranteed because access is controlled by cameras that exchange data with the parking lots. And it is not the only city that chooses this way of acting. Most of the information that suggests that cars with a B label cannot circulate in the center of a good handful of Spanish cities hides in its headline that yes they can do it as long as they park in a parking lot. The streets of the cities have ended up becoming on the battlefield of mobility. Forced by the States or by their own decision, large cities are trying to reduce the passage of vehicles and deliberately eliminate parking spacesthey roll out the red carpet for shared vehicles or widen sidewalks to absorb the flow of their citizens but also the massive arrival of tourists. Given this situation, the European Union has found an argument for citizens to switch to electric cars. Yeah one of the great attractions of the motorcycle is to reach our destination door to door, European politicians want to propose something equally attractive for cars. Cars, microcars or the luck of kei cars to the European one that wants to move forward to fight with smaller Chinese electric cars, cheaper than European ones. Free way to park According to Financial Timesone of the incentives that the European Commission is preparing for the creation of this new category of vehicles is, precisely, that its owner does not face any restrictions of any kind when parking. The measure would be just one more incentive for the purchase of a car that would also come with regulatory facilities under its arm, both for the customer and the manufacturer. As we have explained previously, the European Commission wants to put on the table a vehicle that straddles the heavy quadricycle and tourism. An alternative with contained dimensions, electric and that would receive a sticker made in Europe as long as most of its production was local. Europe is trying to improve the competitiveness of its vehicles and position a type of car that would require manufacturing on European soil. Manufacturers would benefit because they would have to meet lower standards. For example, security facilities have been targeted. Although everything remains to be confirmed, it seems that the initial idea is that they are cars that are below 4.1 meters long and a contained price, according to Coach. With current knowledge of batteries, this leaves us with cars with very small electrical energy accumulators because the battery is still the main cost of vehicles. Especially the smaller the car. Thus, we can expect vehicles designed by and for the urban environment where excursions outside the ring roads of a city are very unattractive. That’s why has signed up so that these cars did not have to comply with obligations such as the lane departure warning system, now mandatory in all new cars. Raising your hand with those obligations (in whole or in part) would help the manufacturer position the car at a more competitive and attractive price. This last part is essential for the customer since the cost of acquisition and maintenance can be a huge barrier when buying a car of little use on the open road. To make the latter more attractive, the intention is indicated from Financial Timesis to offer tax facilities to the client, rewarding those who opt for this type of car. Those tax facilities that are already present for some electric cars (such as exemptions on registration or circulation tax) would be added to being able to park anywhere in the city for free. The new regulation, therefore, would buy a good part of what Japan already offers with its kei car. These cars cannot exceed 3.48 meters in length and 1.48 meters in height. Furthermore, the engine cannot exceed 660 cc either. This category is a success because in Japan there are cities where it is mandatory to have a parking space to buy a car, given the lack of space. However, the kei car do not adhere to this standard. But, above all, they succeed in Japan because there rational purchasing is well regarded. With those dimensions and that engine, the vehicle is perfectly functional on a daily basis and even allows short getaways as long as the customer accepts some discomfort. The success is such that it even has its own proposal for kei cars sports. Whether Europe will be able to replicate the Japanese model with this new category, so particular due to its own restrictions and philosophy of life, is something that only time will tell. Photo | Dacia and Kadir Celep In Xataka | Europe is eager for cheap electric cars. Europe’s solution: copy Japan

China aims to break records with the largest ice park in the world. And he has already begun to lift it block by block

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At the end of November, in Harbin, the image is repeated every winter, with a scale that has not stopped growing in recent editions: cranes, machinery and workers begin to raise structures on a surface that weeks later will become walls, towers and slides made of ice. According to official dataconstruction is advanced this year thanks to the ice stored during the previous season and preserved for more than ten months. This material allows work to begin even before the river freezes completely again, with the aim of preparing an area that this winter will have 1.2 million square meters. Harbin Ice-Snow World It has grown from a local celebration to a seasonal theme park that rises again each winter. It functions as an enclosure with defined entrances, circulation areas, walkable structures and spaces to stay for hours, especially when it gets dark and the lighting changes the perception of the place. It is not just a setting for photographs, but a park designed to be walked, used and visited for a few weeks, while weather conditions allow it. When ice stops being landscape and becomes infrastructure Upon entering the venue, the experience is more similar to that of a theme park than a temporary exhibition. You can walk between buildings, climb platforms, slide down ramps or access areas prepared for snow activities. The architectural elements are not presented as immobile pieces, but as part of the route. For this edition, those responsible have announced spaces intended for ice fishing, cross-country skiing and collective snow gamesas well as an additional stage that will complement the cultural activities of the already usual Dream Stage. The proposal does not focus solely on showing structures, but on facilitating their use within a planned and temporary environment. Before erecting ice structures, Harbin already celebrated winter through local practices. Hand-carved ice lanterns began to be used in the city in the middle of the last century and gave rise to the first Harbin Ice and Snow Festival, held on January 5, 1985. indicate official pages. The jump to the current format came in 1999, when Harbin Ice-Snow World was created as an independent venue, with specific access and design. Since then, the evolution has been constant: more surface area, greater volume of materials, presence of machinery and planned construction processes. The park, under construction in November 2025 Harbin has turned winter into a source of economic activity. According to data released by Xinhuathe city received 90.36 million visitors during the last season, with estimated income of 137.22 billion yuan (almost 17 million euros), an increase of 16.6% compared to the previous year. Ice-Snow World does not explain these figures on its own, but it acts as one of the main focuses of attraction and as an element that concentrates tourist services, accommodation, restaurants and transportation during the weeks in which it remains open. The construction mobilizes technical profiles, operators and specialists in structure and lighting, while the opening requires personnel for visitor service, security, maintenance and tourist support. Many of these roles are temporary, but require prior coordination and planning. When comparing Harbin to other major winter events, such as the Sapporo Snow Festival in Japan or Quebec Winter Carnival in Canadathe difference is not only in size, but in structure. Sapporo distributes its sculptures in various urban spaces and Quebec combines culture, parades and outdoor activities, but neither of them functions as a theme park concentrated in a single venue, as occurs in Harbin. Harbin uses hundreds of thousands of cubic meters of ice and snow, according to official data, and builds walkable structures that are part of the route and not just the landscape. It is not so much a festival as a temporary recreational facility. Harbin Ice-Snow World has been integrated into the city’s tourism calendar as a seasonal facility. It is built every year, it opens for a few weeks and It is dismantled when temperatures no longer guarantee stability. This temporary nature does not prevent its planning: the prior storage of ice, the mobilization of workers and the associated services indicate that it is an organized activity and not simply a one-off event. The park functions as a generator of temporary employment, concentrates the winter tourism offer and channels activities that are subsequently complemented by the interior ice and snow enclosure, designed to operate all year round as an extension of the exterior park. There is no pretension of permanence, but of repetition adjusted to the climatic conditions. This repetition has allowed the consolidation of technical, logistical and tourist processes linked to winter as a seasonal economic resource. Images | The Harbin International Ice and Snow festival | Harbin Government In Xataka | Someone wants to build a 144 meter high skyscraper in the middle of the port of Malaga. The reason: luxury tourism

Carratraca was a small town in Malaga with 800 inhabitants. Now it will be the largest natural theme park in Europe

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Carratraca is a small town in Malaga that does not reach the 800 neighbors. Yeah ‘Evolution Park’ It meets its objectives in a short time, however, it will have a unique facility in Spain and an international reference: a theme park dedicated to nature that (among many other claims) wants to be equipped with the longest aquarium in the world and the largest aviary in the country. Along the way, by the way, it aspires to mobilize a million-dollar investment and generate a volume of employment that is equivalent to 45% of the entire population of Carratraca. One figure: 786. They are the neighbors who (according to the INE) are registered in carratracaa small municipality in the Guadalteba regionprovince of Malaga. There, in the heart of the Sierra del Agua, is where an ambitious project has begun to take shape that aspires to become a benchmark beyond Malaga, Andalusia or even Spain: Evolution Parka theme park dedicated to nature that, according to the data outlined by the Board, it will have the longest aquarium in the world and the largest aviary in the country, among other attractions. What exactly will you offer? The regional government presents it as “a nature theme park”, a large facility located on the slopes of the Sierra de Aguas and Sierra Blanquilla that aspires to become into “a reference center for sustainable tourism”. That is at least the philosophy’s rhetoric. If we look for specific details, it comes with reviewing the Andalusian newspaper archives. After all, the project is not new: takes years on the table, although its future seems to have cleared up in recent months thanks to the endorsement administrative. Animals, cabins… and a ‘mega aquarium’. Although the latest What has emerged from the park is that it will have “the longest aquarium in the world”, the largest aviary in Spain, a natural history museum, planetarium and 360º cinema. The Andalusian press has been making some progress for some time. keys of the project. For example, it will have animals, although it will move away from the traditional concept of a zoo. There is who points In fact, it will also act as a wildlife rescue center, recreate habitats and be the biggest theme park of the nature of Europe. In April SOUTH pointed out that the enclosure will include themed accommodation (such as African-style cabins), a museum with replicas of extinct animals made by paleoartists, a simulator type ‘Flying Theater’ or a train that will allow visitors to move around the enclosures and observe the animals safely. Regarding the aquarium, he pointed out that it will measure about 80 meters long. All in one large farm of the Sierra del Agua located just four kilometers from the urban center of Carratraca and connected through the A-354 highway. The town is located about an hour’s drive from the center of Malaga. Another figure: 10 million. Although the initiative seems to have aroused enthusiasm in the Board and the City Council, in reality it is a private proposal which will start with an investment of three million of euros and will end up mobilizing around 10 million. Behind is Ecological and Recreational Estate Arroyo las Cañas 2013. The diary SOUTH clarify that to give shape to the project, a land of around 200 hectares was chosen within the municipality of Carratraca and that the idea (at least today) is to have the project ready in four years. “It’s not just sun and beach”. If the future park is in the news today, it is because its promoters have managed to go beyond paper and infographics. The laying of the first stone of Evolution Park was celebrated on Thursday, a symbolic ceremony which, however, is interesting for two reasons: first because it confirms that the project is alive; second, because it has demonstrated its institutional support. The Minister of Tourism, Arturo Bernal, attended the event, for example, and highlighted that the complex “will generate an economic and social impact” that will make the small Malaga town “a new benchmark for nature tourism.” 350 jobs. A curious fact about Evolution Park is that it aspires to generate a volume of jobs that is equivalent to almost half of the population of Carratraca (780 residents), as it was responsible for underline yesterday the Junta de Andalucía. “This unique project in Europe, with a private investment of 10 million, will promote the creation of more than 350 direct and indirect jobs,” celebrated the leader, who insisted that Evolution Park will help diversify the tourist offer of the entire province. “Projects like this are the best proof of why Andalusia is a leading and reference destination. A destination that is not only sun and sand, but also mountains, culture, heritage, sustainability and life.” Images | Andalusia Tourism, Ian Schneider (Unsplash) and Ministry of Tourism and Foreign Andalusia (X) In Xataka | The coast of Huelva has been touristed for decades. Now one of its last virgin areas will become a megaurbanization

is in a park full of parents with umbrellas

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In times where love seems to be summed up in a “swipe left” or “swipe right”, finding a partner has never been so easy… Or so difficult. While Tinder, Bumble or Hinge promise algorithmic compatibility, in China the most popular dating “app” does not require an internet connection, just a printer, an umbrella and worried parents. Every weekend, entire parks in cities like Beijing, Shanghai and Chongqing are transformed into a mosaic of laminated posters with personal descriptions. It is not the singles themselves who place them, but their parents. It is the so-called marriage market or xiangqin jiao (literally, “blind dating corner”), a phenomenon that can be described as an analog version of a dating app. Love in times of demographic crisis. The rise of these markets has its origins in a paradox: while matching apps and agencies multiply, weddings and births plummet. In 2024, only 6.1 million couples will get married in China, 21% less than the previous year and the lowest number since records began. according to data from the Wall Street Journal. This year there was a small rebound — 3.54 million marriages in the first half — thanks to a new policy that simplifies civil registration according to the South Morning Post. But the general trend continues to plummet. The causes of this situation they are multiple: long working hours, high housing prices, gender inequality and, above all, new priorities among young people. “Energy is limited, so I eliminate what drains me the most. First thing? Dates,” confessed a 22-year-old studentreflecting a profound generational change. Faced with this scenario, many parents decided to move from concern to action: if their children are not looking for a partner online, they are looking for one in the parks. How does the Tinder of paper? According to Noema Magazinethe first love market emerged more than a decade ago in Shanghai, in People’s Park. Every Saturday and Sunday, no matter rain or shine, the park is filled with parents with signs hanging on ropes, benches or open umbrellas. They detail age, height, weight, salary, property, including whether the candidate’s parents have a pension. Photos, interestingly, are optional. “Those who do it best are the average ones: neither very good nor terrible,” explained a matchmaker nicknamed the Professor Guwhich charges the equivalent of $16 to display a poster for six months. In Chongqing, another of the large cities of the southwest, The Wall Street Journal described similar scenes: retired parents squeezed on paths covered with posters. Some attendees use WeChat — the ubiquitous app in China — to scan QR codes or exchange contacts. A woman included in her profile that she earns $560 a month, that she owns a house and a car, and that she is looking for a husband “without bad habits, under 29 years old and no taller than 1.73.” On the next page, a 26-year-old man asked for a wife with a university education and “who is not too plump,” a reflection of still very traditional standards. The cultural contrast is evident. In China, marriages are still considered an economic and family alliance rather than a romantic act. Therefore, the marriage market is, as detailed in Noema Magazine“a fusion between Match.com and a farmers market,” where banners replace digital profiles and parents act as human filters. Marriage market in Shanghai Is love found? Really, few achieve success. The stories of couples formed under this phenomenon They are almost non-existent. Most return every weekend out of habit, for company or simply to kill time. A father from Shanghai, interviewed by The Agehas been there for more than a year and has only gotten two matches for his 36-year-old son, with no results. “I only act as an intermediary, I pass the information on to him, but in the end it depends on him,” he confessed resignedly. Despite everything, for many it is a form of generational catharsis. “Our kids think ‘why should I settle?’” said a woman nicknamed Sister Gaoa veteran matchmaker who arrives every week with dozens of laminated profiles. “In our generation, people put up with more. Today they don’t want to tolerate anything.” There are also young people who challenge the norm. As reported by the state media CGTNHuang Junjie, 29, decided to advertise himself in the Beijing market. “I tried apps like Douyin or Xiaohongshu, but they felt very far away. Here at least you see people face to face,” he explained, standing next to his sign. He was looking for a mature woman and was even willing to get married. matrilocal —living with the wife’s family—something unthinkable a generation ago. Beyond love. Behind every umbrella is a story of anxiety and family pride. In China, many parents feel that seeing their children married is their last mission in life. In a society where being single is perceived almost as a failure, the markets They are both a space of hope and shame. For this reason, some parents They confessed to feeling humiliated for having to “offer” their children in public, although others defended their right to intervene. “The girls are not willing to say ‘I want a boyfriend’, so we help them,” said a mother from Shanghai. In essence, the phenomenon also reflects loneliness of an older generation. With more than 300 million retirees, many of them widowed or divorced, attending the love market is also a way to socialize, not to be left alone at home. Meanwhile, the Government is trying to stop the decline in marriages with economic incentives, child subsidies and even university courses on “romantic education.” But, as analysts point outthe results remain modest: young people value personal freedom more than the pressure to get married. A pressure for women. In this scenario, women bear disproportionate pressure. In China, staying single beyond the age of 27 can make you a Sheng Nuliterally “leftover woman.” The term, popularized by state media in the 2000s, became a social stigma that pushes many professionals to justify their singleness to … Read more

Santa Claus has turned his “neighborhood” into an unbearable theme park

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In December, millions of children – and not so children – they write their letters for Santa Claus and they send them to their house in Lapland. In Lapland there are also people who write their letters, but wishing for something completely different: that tourists stop coming looking for Santa Claus. Because few places reflect so well what causes tourism such as Rovaniemi, the capital of the region. And the locals are fed up. Santa Claus’s city. Lapland is a Finnish region located near the Arctic Circle and its capital, Rovaniemiis a small city of about 65,000 inhabitants. It is surrounded by nature, but what puts it on the map each winter season is the “Santa Claus VillageFounded in 1985, the idea was to imitate something that disney I had been doing quite well for years: monetize the illusion. In fact, the country itself was the one that promoted officially Lapland as the authentic home of Santa Claus. And what was initially a decision to energize an area devastated by the Second World War (in fact, Rovaniemi’s population was residual until the mid-80s), it ended up forming a huge snowball. Burst. HE esteem The Santa Claus Post Office has received more than 15 million letters from 200 countries since it opened in 1985. In the busiest months, they receive 30,000 letters a day. But they don’t just receive letters: they also receive tourists. The “attraction” is open all year round, but it is during the busiest months (as Christmas approaches) when the number of tourists can exceed the local population by ten to one. The busiest day is obviously the 23rd, as tourists want to see Santa Claus leave. And the estimates is that Rovaniemi alone accounts for a third of the benefits of all tourism in Lapland, contributing around 400 million euros to the city. In fact, it is expected to increase by another 200 million annually over the next five years, something that motivates the opening of new hotels and more air connections, even in summer. Doesn’t stop. Because, of course, that number of tourists must sleep somewhere and, although Rovaniemi is not very big and depends on that Christmas tourism, it also seeks to stop being stationary. For example, there is a airport expansion plan for add 1,000 square meters to the terminal, as well as projects to diversify the tourist offer beyond the Christmas season. The plan is to develop adventure and wellness tourism in summer, taking advantage of the fact that they are surrounded by exotic nature and, thus, distribute the flow of visitors throughout the year. To contextualize, esteem that more than 700,000 people visited the region in 2024. They are almost the same as who visited Yucatán at its peak. To the south is Rovaniemi and next to the airport is the village of ‘Santa’ Reviews. And what had to happen happened, something that many other cities around the world are experiencing: a huge influx of tourists that are disturbing the local population. Part of the complaints about this touristification of Lapland They come from those who live all year round in Rovaniemi. Although hotels have been built and more are underway, they are not enough to accommodate so many tourists, so the tourist apartments make their august. This causes a shortage of housing and price increase. They also lament the saturation of local infrastructure during these peak seasons (going to the market on one of those days must be… fun) and something deeper: the loss of cultural identity in the face of excessive commercialization. In fact, in September last year, a group of local activists organized demonstrations demanding measures to prevent uncontrolled tourist growth. The mayor of the city himself recognized that something must be done to find balance, but that the financial gains are there. And both the Finnish Parliament and the Sami themselves they published in 2018 a guide to promote more sustainable and ethical tourism. And nature? Well, there is the other part of the cake and another reason for complaint for the locals. In a report by Guardianthe data of an analysis is presented that shows how, around the most popular tourist spots in Lapland, huge green areas have been developed focused solely on tourism. They include parks, hotels, ski slopes, virtual reality experiences to see the northern lights out of season, and vacation homes. In fact, they estimate that 15% of new urban developments in the region are related to tourism and that, over the past few years, 2.7 million square meters of nature have been consumed in a 10-kilometer radius with Rovaniemi in the center. Half of them are attributed directly to the tourism sector. But tourism is not the only threat. Snowball. In statements to the British media, a pastor from reindeer Sami (the local indigenous community that has been herding reindeer for generations) regrets that there is a set of factors (tourism, mining and logging) that is destroying grazing areas, but it is a situation that is not going to stop, but will increase as if it were a snowball. Taking into account that estimate of adding another $200 million in the short term to annual tourism, the Lapland regional council is already weaving a strategy to “grow resorts until they reach a critical mass in which the conditions for growth are so favorable that they attract more business and vitality to the area.” Meanwhile, environmentalists and locals will continue to wonder what will happen to the cultural heritage of the Sami people when the wave of tourism finishes passing over them. Images | Visit Rovaniemi, Ernmuhl In Xataka | “We do not want to be the Ibiza of the north”: the anti-tourism movement in Cantabria already mobilizes thousands of people

The eruption of a volcano was synonymous with danger 100 years ago. Today has made Iceland a theme park

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Exactly one year ago, Iceland took a unexplored path In his fight against mass tourism: in essence, tell the truth to the visitor. Thus began a marked campaign For a slogan: “No one will save you if you fall”, which unequivocally came to confirm the hordes of the dangers of getting too close to an erupting volcano. Today, Iceland wonders if it was worth “opening” both the world. The awakening that changed everything. In 2010, when Eyjafjalajökull volcano interrupted air traffic European with an ash cloud that paralyzed the continent, Iceland went from being a remote island and evoked in Nordic sagas to become a global stage. The images of glaciers, black beaches and hot springs spread by international chains aroused the curiosity of the world in a country that had just suffered the blow of The financial crisis. With the campaign Inspired by Icelandthe government and tourism industry They took the moment. From then on, the landing of low -cost airlines and Viral phenomena In social networks (including a Justin Bieber video clip between waterfalls and aircraft remains) they catapulted the island to essential destination. Mass tourism. In just fifteen years, the number of visitors went from less than half a million to More than 2.3 million annuallymultiplying the local population several times during the high season. Tourism revitalized villages, generated employment and transformed the economyto the point of becoming the Main motor of the country. Locations Like Vikonce agricultural, they saw how the stables gave way to guest houses, improvised coffees in school bus and attractions of adventure. Immigration accompanied This boom: in some municipalities, foreigners are already a majority, and the arrival of new residents has even caused an unexpected “baby boom”. For many mayors and local businessmen, current problems are preferable to the decline of peoples that previously seemed condemned to abandonment. The identity dilemma. However, obviously not everything is good news. Tourism has contributed economic vitality, employment and infrastructure, but also tensions. Farmers complain about visitors who enter their lands or feed horses without permission, even causing deaths of animals. In Vikthe massive arrival of foreign workers has altered the social and urban fabric, with prefabricated homes that change traditional aesthetics. Even in schools they have had to Put posters to prevent tourists from photographing children. In the environmental plane, basic systems as the sewer They have been overwhelmed. Many Icelanders recognize the prosperity that tourism has given them, but they wonder how much local culture can resist without diluting. Iceland as theme park. More than a decade later that Eyjafjalajökull Cover the European sky with ashes and put the country on the global map, many critics argue that the island has run the risk of becoming in a “volcanoes theme park.” The geysers, glaciers and mountains of fire are today part of an itinerary Almost prefabricated, driven by low -cost airlines and Instagram selfies, which concentrates crowds in a handful of iconic landscapes while other regions remain outside. What was previously perceived as an indomitable and mysterious territory has become a tourist decoration subject to the logic of rapid consumption, where the eruption that attracted the world was transformed In advertising claim permanent. For many Icelandic, the paradox is evident: the volcano that saved the economy now threatens to devour the essence of their country. The future. Thus, academics and analysts propose Diversify the routes and offer deepest experiences linked to the history and culture of the country, to prevent tourism from reduced to a handful of “postcard places.” Regions such as Western Fjords or Fisheries North are still relatively on the sidelines, although the opening of direct flights could change the situation. The issue, according to many Icelanders, is not to close the door to visitors, but rethink the model: Attract those who want a longer and more conscious experience, instead of fast visits dictated by social networks. The national phrase Þetta Reddast (“Everything will work out”) reflects the resilient optimism of the country, although now faces the most uncomfortable question: Can Iceland continue to receive the entire world without sacrificing what made it unique? Image | Pexels, Berserkur In Xataka | “No one will save you if you fall into the volcano”: Iceland reopens one of its greatest claims with the best anti -tourism slogan In Xataka | In Barcelona, ​​the anti-tourism movement is adopting a radical tactic: harass tourists down the street

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