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How much money is actually thrown into the Trevi Fountain

<p>Around 21 million tourists visit Rome each year, with most of them making a pit stop at the Trevi fountain, one of the most popular and Instagrammable tourist spots in the world. </p> <p>Many take part in the special tradition that has been going on for hundreds of years, that is tossing a coin into the fountain in hopes that their wishes come true. </p> <p>The money is collected twice a week, with signs around the fountain explaining that the change will go to the local not-for-profit organisation Caritas, which is run by the Catholic Church. The money is then used to fund a food bank, soup kitchen and welfare projects in Rome. </p> <p>“The collection and cleaning operations are carried out as quickly as possible to try to reduce the downtime of the fountain,” Francesco Prisco, a manager at regional utility ACEA said. </p> <p>The coins are collected by ACEA workers using long brooms and suction hoses, and according to a 2022 report by Reuters, the church collected  1.4 million euros – about $A2.2 million — from the fountain, with more believed to have been gathered in 2023. </p> <p>The iconic tourist attraction was completed in 1762 and covers one side of Palazzo Poli in central Rome with its statues of Tritons guiding the shell chariot of the god Oceanus. </p> <p>It has since attracted millions of visitors. </p> <p><em>Image: Shutterstock</em></p> <p> </p>

International Travel

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Tourist accused of causing over $8,000 in damages to iconic Roman statue

<p>A 22-year-old German tourist has been accused of causing around €5,000 (A$8,400) in damages to the 16th-century Fountain of Neptune in the Piazza della Signoria, Italy. </p> <p>Surveillance footage obtained by the police allegedly show the tourist - who has not been named - climbing over the protective barrier around the monument in the early hours of Monday morning as he posed for a photo on the statue. </p> <p>His two friends, who stood outside of the barrier, took the photos of him and they all fled the scene when the alarm went off, according to city authorities.</p> <p>"According to the investigators' reconstruction, after 1 o'clock this morning the tourist, in Piazza della Signoria with two other friends, climbed over the fence of the Neptune Fountain and climbed onto the edge of the pool," the statement read. </p> <p>"With a jump he then climbed onto the horse's leg, reaching the base of the carriage and, after having some photos taken by his friends, he climbed down," they added.</p> <p>"During the descent he placed his foot again on the hoof, damaging it. As soon as the alarm went off, however, the young man had already managed to escape with the two others." </p> <p>The tourist will be charged under the city penal code that prohibits the "destruction, dispersion, deterioration, disfigurement, soiling or illicit use of cultural or landscape assets."</p> <p>He has been detained in Florence and could be fined and banned from entering the city if convicted. </p> <p>Image:<em> X (formerly Twitter)</em></p>

Travel Trouble

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10 beautiful fountains around the world (besides Trevi)

<p>Rome doesn't have a monopoly on beautiful fountains! Here are 10 wondrous water features worth adding to your bucket list.</p> <p><strong>The Archibald Fountain</strong></p> <p><img src="https://oversixtydev.blob.core.windows.net/media/2022/08/fountains-archibald_shutterstock_770.jpg" alt="" width="1000" height="650" /></p> <p><em>Image: </em><em>Shutterstock</em></p> <p>This fountain in Sydney’s Hyde Park commemorates the alliance between France and Australia during the First World War. The sculptures, which are all taken from Greek mythology, represent harmony and self-sacrifice.</p> <p><strong>The Unisphere</strong></p> <p><strong><img src="https://oversixtydev.blob.core.windows.net/media/2022/08/fountains-unisphere_shutterstock_770.jpg" alt="" width="1000" height="649" /></strong></p> <p><em>Image: Shutterstock</em></p> <p>This steel globe was created for the 1964 World’s Fair in New York. Weighing 350 tonnes and surrounded by a series of single water-jet fountains, the Unisphere offers visitors a chance to cool off on hot summer days. There are plans afoot to create an entire water park with the fountain as its centrepiece.</p> <p><strong>The Warsaw Fountain</strong></p> <p><img src="https://oversixtydev.blob.core.windows.net/media/2022/08/fountains-warsaw-paris_shutterstock_770.jpg" alt="" width="1000" height="649" /></p> <p><em>Image: Shutterstock</em></p> <p>Of all the fountains in the Jardin du Trocadéro in Paris, the highlight is the Warsaw Fountain with its 20 water cannons shooting water roughly 50 metres. Together with 56 smaller fountains and a dozen water columns, it also augments a spectacular view of the Eiffel Tower.</p> <p><strong>The Magic Fountain of Montjuïc</strong></p> <p><img src="https://oversixtydev.blob.core.windows.net/media/2022/08/fountains-magic-fountain-montjuic_shutterstock_770.jpg" alt="" width="1000" height="650" /></p> <p><em>Image: Shutterstock</em></p> <p>Water, light and colour – the Magic Fountain in the south of Barcelona, certainly lives up to its name. An amazing 3620 jets of water and 4760 lights are synchronised with a musical score, creating this single gigantic fountain with its magical radiance.</p> <p><strong>The Villa d’Este</strong></p> <p><img src="https://oversixtydev.blob.core.windows.net/media/2022/08/fountains-villa-deste_shutterstock_770.jpg" alt="" width="1000" height="650" /></p> <p><em>Image: Shutterstock</em></p> <p>This garden really packs a punch! The Villa d’Este in Tivoli near Rome is home to around 500 different fountains. The biggest and most impressive of them all is the Neptune Fountain, with its water jets on different levels shooting up several metres into the air. The deafeningly loud display delights countless numbers of tourists every year.</p> <p><strong>Dubai Mall Waterfall</strong></p> <p><img src="https://oversixtydev.blob.core.windows.net/media/2022/08/fountains-dubai-mall_shutterstock_770.jpg" alt="" width="1000" height="650" /></p> <p><em>Image: Shutterstock</em></p> <p>A waterfall in the middle of a shopping centre? That could only happen in the United Arab Emirates – at least on this scale! The Dubai Mall Waterfall is as tall as the shopping centre and cascades down all four levels. Particularly impressive are the more than a dozen lifelike fibreglass sculptures plunging headfirst into the pool.</p> <p><strong>The Fountain of Wealth</strong></p> <p><img src="https://oversixtydev.blob.core.windows.net/media/2022/08/fountains-wealth-signapore_shutterstock_770.jpg" alt="" width="1000" height="649" /></p> <p><em>Image: Shutterstock</em></p> <p>Many fountains promise to bring visitors good luck, as long as they are willing to make an offering, or rather a small donation. In Singapore however, anyone seeking their fortune and happiness has only to place their hand into the water and walk three times around the Fountain of Wealth. Built according to the rules of feng shui, its inwardly flowing waters are said to award wealth and prosperity rather than demand the change in your pockets<em>.</em></p> <p><strong>The Friendship of Nations Fountain</strong></p> <p><img src="https://oversixtydev.blob.core.windows.net/media/2022/08/friendship-fountain-moscow_shutterstock_770.jpg" alt="" width="1000" height="650" /></p> <p><em>Image: Shutterstock</em></p> <p>Designed to create of national identity, the Friendship of Nations Fountain in Moscow, Russia, glorifies the 16 countries of the former Soviet Union. Each statue depicts a woman wearing her country’s national dress. They stand around a giant golden wheat sheaf and approximately 800 water jets in front of the All-Russia Exhibition Centre – truly spectacular!</p> <p><strong>Fountains of Bellagio</strong></p> <p><img src="https://oversixtydev.blob.core.windows.net/media/2022/08/bellagio-fountains_shutterstock_770.jpg" alt="" width="1000" height="649" /></p> <p><em>Image: Shutterstock</em></p> <p>Spanning more than 300 metres in length and shooting more than 150 metres in the air, the Fountains of Bellagio in Las Vegas are a sight to behold. Every 30 minutes from Monday to Friday and every 15 minutes on weekends, visitors can watch a unique light show to a variety of music from classical, opera, Broadway to pop tunes. Each performance is uniquely choreographed, so you’ll never see the same one twice!</p> <p><strong>Giant Wild Goose Pagoda Fountain</strong></p> <p><img src="https://oversixtydev.blob.core.windows.net/media/2022/08/fountains-china-pagoda_shutterstock_770.jpg" alt="" width="1000" height="650" /></p> <p><em>Image: Shutterstock</em></p> <p>Built during the Tang dynasty, the five-story Buddhist Giant Wild Goose Pagoda in Xian is one of China’s most beautiful attractions. It holds Asia’s largest musical fountain, which plays the beautiful Water Phantom of Tang symphony, and visitors can catch a spectacular light show after dark.</p> <p><em><span id="docs-internal-guid-8a08b769-7fff-17d3-9e76-b2e639874e77">Written by Cornelia Kumfert and Erika Morris. This article first appeared in <a href="https://www.readersdigest.co.nz/travel/10-beautiful-fountains-around-the-world-besides-trevi" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Reader’s Digest</a>. For more of what you love from the world’s best-loved magazine, <a href="http://readersdigest.innovations.co.nz/c/readersdigestemailsubscribe?utm_source=over60&amp;utm_medium=articles&amp;utm_campaign=RDSUB&amp;keycode=WRA87V" target="_blank" rel="noopener">here’s our best subscription offer.</a></span></em></p> <p><em>Image: Shutterstock</em></p>

International Travel

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"How can they do this?" Iconic house of Kath and Kim demolished

<p dir="ltr">The iconic house used in the popular Australian TV series that gave us foxy ladies <em>Kath and Kim</em> has been demolished.</p> <p dir="ltr">Demolition works began on Monday on the property known as "Chateau Kath" in the fictional “effluent” suburb of Fountain Lakes.</p> <p dir="ltr">Pete Rowsthorn, who played Brett in the series, said the house contained a lot of memories but it's time to move on.</p> <p dir="ltr">“It was a weird house, if I bought it I'd probably pull it down too," he told ABC Melbourne radio.</p> <p dir="ltr">"It had really quite small rooms … the squeaky back door, that was all natural sound. There was no foley man putting that on top.</p> <p dir="ltr">"I played cricket in the backyard with Shane Warne, I danced in the garage with Kylie Minogue, I sat and had dinner with Barry Humphries dressed up as a monk.”</p> <p dir="ltr">The home, actually located in the Melbourne suburb of Patterson Lakes, was last sold for $1.485 million in 2016.</p> <p dir="ltr">Owner Joanne Kelly said it was time for a change as works begin to build a two-storey property for her family.</p> <p dir="ltr">She held an open house in 2019 to raise money for cancer, which gave fans from all over the country to see the estate in person. </p> <p dir="ltr">ABC rented the home from 2002 to 2007 for the filming of the series which has a large following.</p> <p dir="ltr">It follows the story of a dysfunctional mother and daughter created and played by Jane Turner and Gina Riley.</p> <p dir="ltr">Fans in the Facebook group “Da Kath &amp; Kim appreciation society”, which has more than 114,500 followers have been left devastated at the home’s demolition. </p> <p dir="ltr">Many questioned why the house would be purchased and renovated given its significance to fans all over.</p> <p dir="ltr">“Why would you buy a perfectly good house.. and one that has (dare I say) cultural significance to a great number of people, and then destroy it? It makes no sense,” someone asked.</p> <p dir="ltr">“I only had two reasons for wanting to visit Australia - to see the Kath &amp; Kim house and visit Ramsay Street. Nothing goes right. Guess I’ll stay at home in the UK and drown my sorrows,” another said.</p> <p dir="ltr">“Amazing how the demolition of the fake Kath and Kim house pulls on your heart strings. RIP to memories,” someone else commented.</p> <p dir="ltr">“How is the house not ERITAGE listed!? Well, if it's not, it bloody well should be. The house is turn of the century, an Edwardian dream... BLOODY HOWARD,” another commented with references to the show. </p> <p dir="ltr">“Bunch of crims, tearing this effluent home down. Should be heritage listed,” someone else commented.</p> <p dir="ltr">“Why on earth are they doing this?? Is the new owner tired of fans stopping by?? This is honestly so awful of them,” someone asked.</p> <p dir="ltr">“How can they do this!? This house is an important part of Australian culture!” another stated.</p> <p dir="ltr"><em>Images: Facebook</em></p>

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Rome considers extreme measures to protect Trevi Fountain

<p>The Trevi Fountain is considered one of the must-see attractions in Rome, and many tourists flock there yearly to throw a coin into the fountain.</p> <p>Bad behaviour from tourists though may be responsible for a heavy-handed response from Rome’s city council to protect the iconic structure which could ruin the experience for others.</p> <p>In 2019, an American tourist was caught bathing in the fountain, another woman was stopped from carving the fountain with a key and three drunk Australians were caught pouring their drinks into the fountain.</p> <p>The fountain, which was built in 1762, is one of the most popular spots in Rome and is surrounded by tourists following the tradition of tossing three coins over their shoulders into the water.</p> <p>One politician has an idea on how to protect the icon: barriers.</p> <p>"Rome is one of the richest cities for culture in the world, and a heritage like this must be respected and protected," Andrea Coia, president of the business committee of Rome’s city council motion reads.</p> <p>"We need to favour a more respectful kind of tourism in the city's symbolic places."</p> <p>He has suggested that a “protective barrier” that would “prohibit people sitting on the edge of the fountain”.</p> <p>"I put forward the motion because the symbolic places of our city need more control and attention," Coia told<span> </span><em><a rel="noopener" href="https://edition.cnn.com/travel/article/trevi-fountain-barrier-overtourism/index.html" target="_blank">CNN Travel</a></em>, adding that his suggested Trevi Fountain checkpoints would be on the access roads "to safeguard decorum and security."</p> <p>He said that the measures would "safeguard one of the world's most beautiful places and assure a better experience for those who want to enjoy it."</p> <p>Scroll through the gallery to see why the barriers around the fountain might not be such a bad idea.</p>

International Travel

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The amount of money tourists throw into the Trevi Fountain is staggering

<p>Tossing a coin over your shoulder and into the Trevi Fountain is as quintessential a part of the Italian holiday experience as getting stomach cramps from too much pasta and gelato, or spending 40 minutes trying to figure out where you are in Venice.</p> <p>But did you have any idea how much tourist’s throw into Rome’s most popular baroque fountain? Well, it turns out all those coins add up together to a small fortune.  </p> <p style="text-align: center;"><iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/U210dFCSpvg" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe></p> <p>NBC News estimates tourists threw a combined $2 million into the fountain in 2016, with the money collected by Rome’s city council workers at the end of each day. The money is clean, weighed, counted and sent to Caritas, a Catholic non-profit that supports various causes including health, disaster relief and ending poverty.</p> <p>Rome’s city council recently passed a law deeming it illegal for thieves to take coins for the fountain and Caritas said this has led to a 20 to 30 per cent spike in its takings.</p> <p style="text-align: center;"><iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/Z_GhQOr81TE" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe></p> <p>And it’s not just coins that make their way into the fountain.</p> <p>"Among the coins often we find other objects, including glasses, religious medals, and even a couple of dentures," the Caritas spokesperson told NBC News.</p> <p>So, there you have it! Did you imagine $2 million would pass through the fountain in just one year? Have you ever been to Italy, and if so how did you find it?</p>

International Travel

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