Beautiful Life of Switzerland in the Early 1960s Through Found Kodachrome Slides

A Kodachrome slide collection was found by Kevin Danks that shows beautiful life of Switzerland in May 1963.

“These Kodachrome slides came from eBay, the first large collection I bought. A group of British holidaymakers on a coach trip to Switzerland. From the index card I got with these slides, I am certain the photographer and his wife are now dead (by the way, his wife was called Vi (Violet?) and he is anonymous). 

It is sad that no one in the family wanted these, or that maybe they didn't know about them. Perhaps there wasn't anyone to inherit them. Whatever the reason, they are now safe with me and that has to be better than being in landfill somewhere.” 

Gruyere (tea stop), 1963

Gruyere (tea stop), 1963

Gstied (coffee stop), 1963

Gunten from boat on lake, 1963

Hotel De La Truite, Reuchenette, 1963

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40 Incredible Photos That Show Interior of the R.M.S. Mauretania During Its Launching in 1906

R.M.S. "Mauretania" is a photographic album held by the DeGolyer Library, at Southern Methodist University. Images include the dining room, lounge, deck areas, and state rooms.

Interior of the R.M.S. Mauretania during its launching in 1906

Unlike its sister ship, the Lusitania, which was torpedoed by a German U-boat during World War I, off the coast of Ireland, the Mauretania survived World War I and continued to operate until its eventual retirement from service in 1934.

During its lifetime, the Mauretania held the speed record for fastest transatlantic crossing from 1909 to 1929, and served as both a troop ship and hospital ship during World War I.

Photographs in the album from SMU Libraries Digital Collections are attributed to Bedford Lemere & Co., architectural photographers to His Majesty the King.

At full speed on the measured mile, circa 1906

Stern view showing disposition of propellers, circa 1906

Bow view during launching, circa 1906

Grand entrance. A. deck, 1906

Boat deck promenade, circa 1906

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Amazing Portraits of Elspeth Beard, the First British Woman to Ride a Motorcycle Around the World

In an age before sat-nav, internet, email and mobile phones – and in an age when women hardly ever traveled alone to adventurous countries – Elspeth Elspeth achieved something that is still remarkable today. In 1982, Beard embarked on a two-year solo journey that would take her around the world on her beloved motorbike - the first British woman to do so. From the outback of Australia to the mountains of Nepal, Beard has traveled through some fascinating places. The great stories behind these places and her achievement as a solo rider have been turned into a brilliant book, Lone Rider, in 2017.

“When I set off to ride my motorbike around the world in 1982 I never imagined that my story would be published,” she said of her book. “On my return, in 1984, I put all my journals, tapes and photos in a cardboard box in the back of a cupboard where they remained for over thirty years.”

Beard learned to ride a motorcycle on Salisbury Plain at the age of 16. She began her round the world journey in 1982, after the third year of her architect training course, using a BMW R60/6 motorcycle. Beard added soft panniers, a tank bag and an extra bag lashed to the pillion seat before she embarked on the trip.

In October 1982, Beard shipped her beloved BMW to New York and arrived at Heathrow with a tent and a few belongings. “I was very nervous but I was also excited and felt a tingle of freedom.” When she arrived in New York, she got on her motorbike and rode to Canada, then south to Mexico and back north to Los Angeles.

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The Past in Focus: 200 Fascinating Vintage Travel Photographs Are Being Restored

Two-hundred obscure photographs that have been buried in archives around the world are being brought to new life by Diana Metzinger, a young woman from Cleveland, who is restoring the images for her crowdfunding project The Grand Tour which will be running until February 4th on Kickstarter.

Climbing Paradise Glacier in Mt. Rainier National Park, Washington, ca. 1911-1920. (Photo by Curtis & Miller/National Photo Company)

S.S. Paris, Ocean Liner, ca. 1890s. (Photo by John S. Johnston/Detroit Publishing Company Collection)

View of Venice, Italy, ca. 1890s. (Photochrom/Library of Congress)

One of the unrestored images: Railroad train at the Paris Exposition, 1889. (Tissandier Collection)

Traveling by reindeer, Archangel, Russia, ca. 1890s. (Detroit Publishing Company Collection)

Last year, she chose to unearth 100 rarely-seen historic images for a restoration project entitled The Past in Focus. This campaign received so much positive feedback from backers that Diana decided to release a second edition, as well as create this new project focusing strictly on travel photography. “The support I received from the Kickstarter community was tremendous and humbling, too. I never realized that so many people were interested in seeing these rare photos restored!”

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Amazing Vintage Star Wars Travel Posters by Steve Thomas

Have you ever wanted to take a trip to a galaxy far, far away? Just to be able to walk the streets of Mos Eisley, or explore the forest moon of Endor, or even experience the swamps of Dagobah. Yep, we have all dreamt of it at one time or the other.

Graphic artist Steve Thomas has taken that dream a little bit further by creating a series of travel posters, in an art-deco style inspired by vintage U.S. parks posters from the 1930s and ’40s, for the Star Wars Universe.

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A Young Woman Traveled From England to Australia and Took These Late Victorian Snapshots

A collection from Leigh McKinnon of late Victorian snapshots taken by a young woman named Jess, of her travels in England and Australia and in between.

Agnew and Rock. These were likely crewman on the England to Australia passenger ship on which the unknown photographer traveled, circa 1895

Italy. Stromboli, Sicily, circa 1895

Ladies, circa 1895

Row Boats, probably at the African Great Lakes, circa 1895

Australia. Buggy, circa 1895

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A Journey of a German Family With the Orient Express From Vienna to Constantinople in 1903

These amazing photos from a set of originally more than 200 negatives that were found by Wolfgang Wiggers.

“Unfortunately many of them were exposed to moisture during the last 114 years and are irretrievable lost. The amateur photographer certainly did not have the best camera, some pictures are only snapshots, but they still convey an interesting impression about an exotic journey at the very beginning of the 20th century.”

The family who made this trip started from Lohr am Main,  a town in Germany, heading to Vienna, where they probably visited friends before they boarded the Orient Express Wien - Budapest - Belgrad - Sofia - Konstantinople. Part of the journey was made on a ship on the river Danube. In Turkey, they made a trip to Eskisehir.

Vienna. Austrian Parliament Building, 1903

Vienna. Before heading to Budapest (big expectations), 1903

Vienna. Before heading to Budapest (Preparations for a journey), 1903

Vienna. Early Morning on the Market, 1903

Vienna. Hofburg, 1903

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Fascinating Vintage Photos From Boeing's Archive Show How Glamorous Flying Was in the 1950s

In our modern world, it's easy to forget how cool flying actually is. But people didn't take flying for granted in the 1950s, when air travel was still new and exciting .

In that era, flight attendants served in-flight meals on fine china plates with proper cutlery , passengers could stretch their legs in lounges on the plane, and even sleep in seats that converted into beds.

Folks at the INSIDER dug through Boeing's digital archives and found some fascinating photos that show what flying was like 60 years ago.

Though the seats do appear to be roomier. The inside of this plane cabin was designed with fabric coverings over the sidewalls, ceiling, and floor, to muffle sound.

Especially in the main passenger cabin, which could seat 18 people. The seats could be lowered into nine double sleeping berths; another nine single sleeping berths could be lowered from overhead.

In addition to reclinable seats, planes featured overhead sleeping berths. Curtains allowed for privacy.

Sleeping berths could just be popped open from the overhead compartments. They could easily be opened and closed.

Overnight flights were certainly more comfortable. It's unclear whether airlines supplied dressing gowns.

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The Luxury Apartment on Wheels: Camping in Style in a 1930s Jungle Yacht

The Jungle Yacht was created for and used by Italian explorer Commander Attilio Gatti and his wife, who both traveled extensively to the African Congo as a deluxe apartment “for his 1937-1940 (his 10th) and 1947 (his 11th) expeditions” and “equipped them quite lavishly.”

The International Harvester 'Jungle Yacht'

The expedition used two streamlined trailers designed by Count Alexis de Sakhnoffsky and using 1937 International Harvester D-35 chassis, and were 44 feet long and weighed 9 tons. The vehicles were built by the International Harvester company, who was evidently one of the sponsors of the expedition.

The trailers were pretty luxurious accommodations for camping out in the boonies of British East Africa. They were joined together in camp as a deluxe 5-room apartment on wheels, and served as headquarters while the expedition’s personnel sought out the secrets of the dim heart of Africa.

The camps were equipped with electricity and air conditioning and had a workshop, a photographic lab, and a ham radio station (Gatti was an enthusiastic ham radio operator). Electricity was supplied by a 110 volt generator mounted behind the cabs of the trucks. Each night a single wire 4500 volt electric fence was put up to dissuade the large specimens of the local wildlife from approaching the camp.

One of the vehicles in transit from the International Harvester factory to New York.

Cocktails in the deepest heart of Africa

The living room

The Commander's desk in the living room

The bedroom

An International Trucks brochure heralds the first journey of the five-room convoy

(via Hooniverse)