Lennys Travel Journals

Alps evening view wallpaper

2011-04-07T06:06:00.000-07:00

The Mighty Alps, evening view

TEMPLE OF HEAVEN, China

2011-04-07T05:58:00.000-07:00

Temple of Heaven, china

Temple of Heaven

UNESCO World Heritage Site 1998

"a masterpiece of architecture and landscape design which simply and graphically illustrates a cosmogony of great importance for the evolution of one of the world’s great civilizations..." as the "symbolic layout and design of the Temple of Heaven had a profound influence on architecture and planning in the Far East over many centuries." --------UNESCO

The Temple of Heaven, literally the Altar of Heaven is a complex of Taoist buildings situated in the southeastern part of central Beijing. The complex was visited by the Emperors of the Ming and Qing dynasties for annual ceremonies of prayer to Heaven for good harvest.

Constructed from 1406 to 1420 during the reign of the Yongle Emperor, the complex was renamed Temple of Heaven during the reign of the Jiajing Emperor in the 16th century

The Temple comprises three main groups of constructions

The Hall of Prayer for Good Harvests

a magnificent circular building, 36 metres in diameter and 38 metres tall, built on three levels of marble stone base, where the Emperor prayed for good harvests. It has four inner, twelve middle and twelve outer pillars, representing the four seasons, twelve months and twelve traditional Chinese hours respectively.

The Imperial Vault of Heaven

a circular building, built on a single level of marble stone base. It is located south of the Hall of Prayer for Good Harvests and resembles it, but is smaller. It is surrounded by the Echo Wall, a smooth circular wall that can transmit sounds over large distances. It connects the Hall of Prayer by the 360 meters Vermilion Steps Bridge

The Circular Mound Altar

located south of the Imperial Vault of Heaven it is an empty circular platform on three levels of marble stones, each decorated by lavishly carved dragons.The center of the altar is a round slate called the Heart of Heaven or the Supreme Yang, where the Emperor prayed for favorable weather.

All the buildings within the Temple have special dark blue roof tiles, representing the Heaven.

The Seven-Star Stone Group, east of the Hall of Prayer for Good Harvest, represents the seven peaks of Taishan Mountain, a place of Heaven worship in classical China.

COLOGNE CATHEDRAL, GERMANY

2011-04-07T05:34:00.000-07:00

Cologne Cathedral, Germany Night View

UNESCO Heritage Sites 1996

"exceptional work of human creative genius" UNESCO

Cologne Cathedral, Cologne, Germany is the seat of the Archbishop of Cologne, and is renowned as a monument of German Catholicism of Gothic architecture. It is dedicated to Saint Peter and Virgin Mary and has been dubbed as "a masterpiece of exceptional intrinsic value" and "a powerful testimony to the strength and persistence of Christian belief in medieval and modern Europe"

The design of Cologne Cathedral was based quite closely on that of Amiens Cathedral in terms of ground plan, style and the width to height proportion of the central nave. The plan is in the shape of a Latin Cross, as is usual with Gothic cathedrals. It has two aisles on either side, which help to support one of the very highest Gothic vaults in the world, being nearly as tall as that of the ill-fated Beauvais Cathedral, much of which collapsed. Externally the outward thrust of the vault is taken up by flying buttresses in the French manner. The eastern end has a single ambulatory, the second aisle resolving into a chevet of seven radiating chapels.

Treasures of the cathedral

The High Altar installed in 1322 and constructed of black marble, with the front and sides overlaid with white marble niches and the Coronation of the Virgin at the centre.

The Shrine of the Three Kings, a large gilded sarcophagus dating from the 13th century, and the largest reliquary in the Western world. It is traditionally believed to hold the remains of the Three Wise Men, whose bones and 2,000-year-old clothes were discovered at the opening of the shrine in 1864.

The Gero-Kreuz, a large crucifix carved in oak believed to have been commissioned around 960 for Archbishop Gero. It is the oldest large crucifix north of the Alps and the earliest-known large free-standing Northern sculpture of the medieval period.

The Mailänder Madonna ("Milan Madonna") in the Sacrament Chapel dating from around 1290, wooden sculpture depicting the Blessed Virgin Mary and the infant Jesus.

SUN YAT SEN MEMORIAL HALL,Taipei

2011-04-06T13:51:00.000-07:00

Sun Yat-sen Memorial Hall

The National Sun Yat-sen Memorial Hall located in Taipei, Taiwan (Republic of China)is a memorial of the Father of the Republic of China, Dr. Sun Yat-sen. It serves as a place not only for people to pay tribute to Father of the Republic, but also for cultural, artistic, educational, academic, and recreational purpose

The hall was opened on May 16, 1972 and its main displays were revolutionary events of the national father at the end of the Qing Dynasty. Designed by Dahong Wang , the total building area covers 29,464 square meters on an open space of 115,000 square meters and it rises 29.6m high

The majestic building is sited in Chung-shan Square Park, featuring green grass and floral bushes. It also has a multi-media theatre , an audio-visual center, lecture halls, Chung-shan Symposium and a library

Sun Yat-sen Memorial Hall/2

Cities at Night/Hongkong

2011-04-06T13:06:00.003-07:00

Honkong Night View

MILAN CATHEDRAL, ITALY

2011-04-06T12:36:00.000-07:00

MILAN CATHEDRAL, ITALY

Milan Cathedral /Piazza del Cuomo (Centro Storico, Milan, Lombardy),which took more than five centuries to complete is the largest Gothic cathedral and the second largest Catholic cathedral in the world. Dedicated to Santa Maria Nascente (Saint Mary Nascent),a 357-foot tall spire designed by Francesco Croce tops the glorious Duomo di Milano, on the top of which lies the beautiful golden statue called Madonnina, carved by Guisepppe Perego. It is indeed one of Italy's most popular landmarks and attractions and is admired by many for its beauty and architecture.

What a wonder it is! So grand, so solemn, so vast! And yet so delicate, so airy, so graceful! A very world of solid weight, and yet it seems ...a delusion of frostwork that might vanish with a breath!... We could see, now, that the statue on the top of each was the size of a large man, though they all looked like dolls from the street... They say that the Cathedral of Milan is second only to St. Peter's at Rome. I cannot understand how it can be second to anything made by human hands.

Mark Twain on his visit in 1867

Main monuments

The sarcophagus of Marco Carelli

"Medeghino", by Leone Leoni,

Renaissance marble altar

St. Bartholomew statue by Marco D'Agrate.

statue of Martin V by Jacopino da Tradate

Cities at Night/Toronto

2011-04-05T12:35:00.000-07:00

Toronto City Night View

CITY OF MANCHESTER STADIUM/COMS, England

2011-04-05T11:57:00.000-07:00

The City of Manchester Stadium located at Sportcity, Rowsley St, Manchester, England is home to English Premier League club Manchester City F.C. It is also referred to as Eastlands and sometimes abbreviated as CoMS. Built at a staggering £140 million, this 105 by 68 metres stadium was opened on 25th July 2002. It has a total seating capacity of 47,726.

Stadium structure

Designed by Arup Associates, the interior of the stadium is a continuous oval bowl, with three tiers of seating at the sides, and two tiers at each end. The stadium is the centrepiece of an area known as Sportcity, which includes several other sporting venues. Adjacent to the stadium is the Manchester Regional Arena( that hosts national athletics trials), The Manchester Velodrome and the National Squash Centre etc.,

It has four stands-

The West Stand renamed as Colin Bell Stand in honour of the former player.

The South Stand officially named as Key 103 Stand for sponsorship reasons ,

The North Stand allocated to families.

The East Stand unofficially known to fans as the Kippax where Supporters of visiting teams are seated

Milestones

First match: 10 August 2003- Manchester City vs Barcelona, Manchester City won the game 2–1 with the first goal at the stadium scored by Nicolas Anelka.
First competitive match: 14th August 2003-Manchester City and Welsh Premier League side TNS Manchester City won 5–0
First EPL match: 23 August 2003-Manchester City vs Portsmouth (Result Draw)
Record attendance: 5 December 2009- 47,348, on Premier League game against Chelsea
It is rated as an elite stadium by UEFA, and it hosted the 2008 UEFA Cup Final between Zenit St Petersburg and Rangers with Zenit being the victors.

BASILICA OF OUR LADY OF LICHEN, Poland

2011-04-04T06:40:00.000-07:00

Basilica of our Lady of Lichen, Poland

The Basilica of Our Lady of Licheń , is one of Poland's principal pilgrimage site

This Roman Catholic church is located in the village of Licheń Stary near Konin in Poland is dedicated to Our Lady of Sorrows, whose icon, is displayed in the basilica's main altar.

It was designed by Barbara Bielecka and built between 1994 and 2004.

With the nave 120 meters long and 77 meters wide, with a central dome 98 meters high, and with a tower 141.5 metres tall. it is Poland's largest church and one of the world's largest.

SYDNEY HARBOUR BRIDGE, Australia

2011-04-04T06:22:00.000-07:00

Sydney Harbour Bridge Night view

The Sydney Harbour Bridge a.k.a "The Coat Hanger" (opened on 19th March 1932) located at Sydney, Australia is a steel-arch bridge spanning Port Jackson in Sydney. It was also nicknamed "the Iron Lung", as it kept many Depression-era workers employed during the Depression period.

It connects the Sydney central business district (CBD) and the North Shore with a total length of 1149 metres, 49m width and 139m height, making it the world's fifth longest spanning-arch bridge in the world.

It was designed by Dr J.J.C. Bradfield based upon New York City's Hell Gate Bridge.

Sydney Harbour Bridge/2

Sydney Harbour Bridge/3

Louvre Museum, Paris wallpaper

2011-04-04T06:10:00.000-07:00

Louvre Museum, Paris wallpaper

Harbour Bridge & Opera House, Sydney wallpaper

2011-04-04T06:06:00.000-07:00

Harbour Bridge with Opera House, Sydney wallpaper

Matterhorn, Switzerland wallpaper

2011-04-04T06:01:00.000-07:00

Matterhorn, Switzerland

London Eye Wallpaper

2011-04-04T05:55:00.000-07:00

London Eye Night View wallpaper

GATESHEAD MILLENNIUM BRIDGE, ENGLAND

2011-04-03T15:51:00.000-07:00

Gateshead millennium bridge view at night

The Gateshead Millennium Bridge is a pedestrian bridge spanning the River Tyne in England between Gateshead's Quays arts quarter on the south bank, and the Quayside of Newcastle upon Tyne on the north bank.

The structure was conceived and designed by architects Wilkinson Eyre and structural engineers Gifford. The bridge is sometimes referred to as the 'Blinking Eye Bridge' or the 'Winking Eye Bridge' due to its shape and its tilting method. This 126m long and 8m width pedestrian tilt bridge was opened to public on 17th September 2001.

Gateshead millennium bridge close view

Special Feature-

Six 45 cm (18 in) diameter Hydraulic rams (three on each side, each powered by a 55 kW electric motor) rotate the bridge back on large bearings to allow small ships and boats (up to 25 m (82 ft) tall) to pass underneath. The bridge takes as little as 4.5 minutes to rotate through the full 40° from closed to open, depending on wind speed. Its appearance during this manoeuvre has led to it being nicknamed the "Blinking Eye Bridge".

Merits-

Conferred to architect firm Wilkinson Eyre and structural engineers Gifford

2002 : Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) Stirling Prize

2003: IStructE Supreme Award.

2005: Outstanding Structure Award from International Association for Bridge and Structural Engineering (IABSE).

HANGZHOU BAY BRIDGE, CHINA

2011-04-03T15:27:00.000-07:00

Hangzhou bay bride, china

Hangzhou Bay Bridge ,Jiaxing / Cixi City , China is a long highway bridge with a cable-stayed portion across Hangzhou Bay in the eastern coastal region of China. It connects the municipalities of Jiaxing and Ningbo in Zhejiang province. At 35.673 km (22 mi) in length, Hangzhou Bay Bridge is the longest trans-oceanic bridge in the world, but it does not have the longest cable-stayed main span. It is also second in the world in overall length, behind the Lake Pontchartrain Causeway in the United States.

Wang Yong, chief director of the Hangzhou Bay Trans-Oceanic Bridge Construction Command Post, described the bridge as being built "in the world's most complicated sea environment, with one of the three biggest tides on Earth, the effect of typhoons and the difficult content of the sea soil."

Hangzhou bay bride/2

Hangzhou bay bride/3

BOSPHORUS BRIDGE, ISTANBUL

2011-04-03T15:16:00.000-07:00

Bosphorus Bridge Night View

The Bosphorus Bridge, Istanbul, Turkey ( also called the First Bosphorus Bridge) is one of the two bridges in Istanbul Turkey, (the other one being the Fatih Sultan Mehmet Bridge a.k.a second Bosphorus Bridge) spanning the Bosphorus strait.

This suspension bridge connects Europe (Ortaköy) and Asia (Beylerbeyi), and with a total length of 1510 mts, it is the 16th longest suspension bridge span in the world.

Turkish firm Enka Construction & Industry Co, Cleveland Bridge & Engineering Co. Ltd. (England) and Hochtief AG (Germany), the bridge was opened to public in 1973.

HENDERSON WAVES, Singapore

2011-04-01T17:28:00.000-07:00

Henderson Waves is the highest pedestrian bridge in Singapore , connects Mount Faber Park and Telok Blangah Hill Park.

The bridge has a wave-form made up of seven undulating curved steel ribs that alternately rise over and under its deck. The curved ribs form alcoves that function as shelters with seats within. Slats of yellow balau wood, an all-weather timber found in Southeast Asia, are used in the decking. The wave-forms are lit with LED lamps at night from 7pm to 2am daily.

Crosses

Location

Designer

Type

Total length

Height

Henderson road, singapore

Singapore

IJP Corporation, London, and RSP Architects Planners and Engineers (PTE) ltd Singapore.

pedestrian bridge

274-metre (899 ft)

36 metres (118 ft)

Henderson waves, Singapore wallpaper view

HIMEJI CASTLE, Japan

2011-04-01T17:16:00.000-07:00

Himeji Castle file pic.

Height	46.4 m
Lengths
East to west	950 to 1,600m
North to south	900 to 1,700m
Circumference	4200 metres
Total Area	2,330,000 m2

Himeji Castle

("White Egret Castle"/"White Heron Castle")

dates back to a fort built by Akamatsu Norimura in 1333 on top of Himeyama hill. This fort was rebuilt as Himeyama Castle in 1346, and then significantly remodeled by Toyotomi Hideyoshi in 1581. From 1601 to 1609, Ikeda completely rebuilt the castle expanding it into a large castle complex. Several buildings were later on added to the castle complex by Honda Tadamasa from 1617 to 1618.

Himeji Castle is the largest and most visited castle in Japan.It was designated in 1993 as one of the first UNESCO World Heritage Sites in Japan.Five structures of the castle are also designated National Treasures: the castle keep , northwest small tower, west small tower, east small tower ), and I, Ro, Ha, Ni-corridors. The area within the middle moat of the castle complex is a designated Special Historic Site

Himeji Castle wallpaper

Details

The principle materials used in the structures of Himeji Castle are stone and wood. It has curved walls resembling giant fans with Feudal family crests installed throughout the architecture of the building. These crests signifies the various lords that lived on the castle throughout its history.

The castle complex has 83 buildings used as storehouses, gates, corridors, and turrets, 11 corridors, 16 turrets, 15 gates, and 32 earthen walls. In 1992 the Koko-en Garden was built to commemorate Himeji city's 100th anniversary.

The castle keep has six floors and a basement and its contains special facilities that are not seen in other castles, including lavatories, a drain board, and a kitchen corridor.

The keep has two pillars, one standing in the east and one standing in the west.

The first floor of the keep, often called the "thousand-mat room" has over 330 Tatami mats.

and have weapon racks for holding matchlocks and spears.

The third and fourth floors have platforms situated at the north and south windows called "stone-throwing platforms", where defenders could observe or throw objects at attackers. They also have small enclosed rooms called "warrior hiding places", where defenders could hide themselves and kill attackers .

Roughly 1,000 loopholes exist in the castle buildings in the shape of circles, triangles, and rectangles are located throughout Himeji Castle, intended to allow musketeers or archers to fire on attackers without exposing themselves.

Besides these, angled chutes called "stone drop windows" were also set at numerous points in the castle walls, enabling stones or boiling oil to be poured on the heads of attackers passing by underneath.

CHIANG KAI-SHEK MEMORIAL HALL, Taipei, Taiwan

2011-04-01T17:10:00.000-07:00

Chiang Kai-shek memorial, Taiwan

The National Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall located in Taipei, Republic of China (Taiwan) was erected in memory of Chiang Kai-shek, former President of the Republic of China.

The monument is surrounded by a park at the east end of Liberty Square, on the north and south by the National Theater and National Concert Hall respectively.

Its design incorporated many elements of traditional Chinese architecture recalling the Sun Yat-sen Mausoleum in Nanjing, China.

Yang Cho-cheng's design placed the main building at the east end of the Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Park covering over 240,000 square metres in Zhongzheng District. A main gate, the Gate of Great Centrality and Perfect Uprightness was placed at the west end on Chung Shan South Road, with a Gate of Great Loyalty standing at the north side on Hsin Yi Road and a Gate of Great Piety standing at the south side on Ai Kuo East Road. A Boulevard of Homage, bordered by manicured bushes, connected the main hall with the square.

KUMAMATO CASTLE, Japan

2011-03-31T12:11:00.000-07:00

Kumamato Castle

Built	Ideta Hidenobu (1467) Kanokogi Chikakazu (1496) Katō Kiyomasa (1601-1607) Katō Kiyomasa (1610)
Construction materials	Wood, stone, plaster, tile
Controlled by	Ideta clan (1469-1496) Kanokogi clan (1496-1550) Jou clan (1550-1587) Sassa clan (1587-1588) Kato clan (1588-1632) Hosokawa clan (1632-1871) Japan (1871-present)
Height	30.3 m (99.4 ft) m (height of the castle keep at the center of the complex)
Lengths
East to west	1.6 km (0.99 mi)
North to south	1.2 km (0.75 mi)

Kumamoto Castle is a hilltop Japanese castle located in Kumamoto in Kumamoto Prefecture. It was a large and extremely well fortified castle. The castle keep is a concrete reconstruction built in 1960,but several ancillary wooden buildings remain of the original castle. Kumamoto Castle is considered one of the three premier castles in Japan, along with Himeji Castle and Matsumoto Castle. Thirteen structures in the castle complex are designated Important Cultural Property.

Kumamoto Castle's history dates to 1467, when fortifications were established by Ideta Hidenobu. In 1496, these fortifications were expanded by Kanokogi Chikakazu. From 1601 to 1607, Kiyomasa greatly expanded the castle, transforming it into a castle complex with 49 turrets, 18 turret gates, and 29 smaller gates.

The smaller castle tower had several facilities including a well and kitchen.

The signature curved stone walls, known as musha-gaeshi, as well as wooden overhangs, were designed to prevent attackers from penetrating the castle.

EMIRATES STADIUM, LONDON, England

2011-03-31T11:48:00.000-07:00

Emirates Stadium, Arsenal FC

Location	London
Opened on	July 2006
Seating capacity	60,355
Constructor	Sir Robert McAlpine
Architect	HOK Sport (now known as Populous)
Engineer	Buro Happold
Size of the pitch	105 × 68 metres

The Emirates Stadium formerly Ashburton Grove, located in London is the current home of Arsenal FC. The 60,355 seater stadium opened in July 2006 making it the second largest football club stadium in England behind Manchester United's Old Trafford, and the third largest stadium of any kind in London, after Wembley and Twickenham.

The stadium was originally divided in to four quadrants North Bank, East Stand, West Stand and Clock End.

The main club shop, named 'The Armoury', and ticket offices are located near the West Stand, with other an additional store at the base of the North Bank Bridge, named 'All Arsenal' and the 'Arsenal Store' next to Finsbury Park station

Emirates Stadium at Night

The installation of eight large murals on the exterior of the stadium, each depicting 4 Arsenal legends linking arms, such that the effect of the completed design is 32 legends in a huddle embracing the stadium:

Ian Wright, George Armstrong, David Jack, Martin Keown
Cliff Bastin, Tony Adams, Liam Brady, Thierry Henry
David Seaman, Ted Drake, David Rocastle, Alex James
Patrick Vieira, Reg Lewis, Lee Dixon, Joe Mercer
Dennis Bergkamp, Bob Wilson, Eddie Hapgood, Charlie George
Nigel Winterburn, David Danskin, Kenny Sansom, Jack Kelsey
Robert Pirès, John Radford, David O'Leary, George Male
Ray Parlour, Frank McLintock, Steve Bould, Pat Rice

Milestones

First match: Arsenal Vs Ajax in which Arsenal won 2–1; Ajax's Klaas-Jan Huntelaar became the first player to score a goal at the stadium, while Thierry Henry scored the first ever Arsenal goal there to equalise and later Kanu scored to win the game
First competitive match: FA Premier League game against Aston Villa on 19 August 2006, which ended 1–1. Aston Villa player Olof Mellberg scored the first goal of the game and thus the first Premier League goal at Emirates Stadium.
First European match: UEFA Champions League on 23 August 2006 Arsenal Vs Dinamo Zagreb.
First international match: Argentina VS Brazil, on 3 September 2006
The highest ever attendance recorded at the stadium (60,161) is on November 3, 2007, during a league match against rivals Manchester United, ending in a 2–2 draw

Maldives Island, wallpaper

2011-03-30T14:04:00.000-07:00

Maldives Island

Beauty of Greece, wallpaper

2011-03-30T13:31:00.000-07:00

Greece, the Beauty

TAIPEI 101, Taiwan

2011-03-30T09:34:00.000-07:00

1st tallest office building in the world

2nd tallest building in the world

6th tallest free standing structure in the world

Location	Xinyi District, Taipei, Taiwan
Constructed	1999-2004
Opening	December 31, 2004
Use	Office, communication & commercial
Height
Antenna or spire	509.2 m (1,670.6 ft)
Roof	449.2 m (1,473.8 ft)
Top floor	439.2 m (1,440.9 ft)
Floor count	101 (+5 basement floors)
Floor area	412,500 m2 (4,440,100 sq ft)
Cost	(USD $ 1.80 billion)
Architect(s)	C.Y. Lee & partners
Structural engineer	Thornton Tomasetti
Contractor	Samsung C&T, KTRT Joint Venture
Owner	Taipei Financial Center Corporation
Management	Urban Retail Properties Co.
Website	taipei-101.com.tw

Taipei 101 formerly known as the Taipei World Financial Center, was the world's tallest upon its completion until the opening of the Burj Khalifa in Dubai in 2010. It has served as an icon of modern Taiwan ever since its opening, and received the 2004 Emporis Skyscraper Award.

Design-

The building was architecturally created as a symbol of the evolution of technology and Asian tradition. Taipei 101 is designed to withstand the typhoon winds and earthquake tremors common in its area of the Asia-Pacific.

Taipei 101's characteristic blue-green glass curtain walls are double paned and glazed, offer heat and UV protection. Recycled water meets 20-30 percent of the building's water needs. Upgrades are currently under way to make Taipei 101 "the world's tallest green building" by LEED standards by summer 2011.

Attractions-

Indoor Observatory (89th floor).

It stands 383.4 m (1,258 ft) above ground, offering a comfortable environment, large windows with UV protection,and informative displays and special exhibits. Here one may view the skyscraper's main damper, nicknamed "Damper Baby", and buy food, drinks and gift items.

Two more flights of stairs take visitors up to the Outdoor Observatory.

Outdoor Observatory (91st floor)

At 391.8 m (1,285 ft) above ground, it is the second-highest observation deck in the world and the highest in Taiwan.

The Indoor Observatory is open twelve hours a day (10:00 am–10:00 pm) throughout the week. Many works of art appear in and around Taipei 101. These include:

Rebecca Horn (Germany). Dialogue between Yin and Yang. 2002. Steel, iron.

Robert Indiana (USA). Love and 1-0. 2002. Aluminum.
Ariel Moscovici (France). Between Earth and Sky. 2002. Rose de la claret granite.
Chung Pu (Taiwan). Global Circle. 2002. Black granite, white marble.
Jill Watson (Britain). City Composition. 2002. Bronze.

Restaurants in the tower include XEX, Diamond Tony's and Shin Yeh 101 Hundreds of international dining establishments and retail outlets also operate in the adjoining mall.

Tenants-

ABN AMRO Bank, Anthony's Group Holding Company Ltd, Bayer Taiwan,The Boston Consulting Group, Cosmos Bank, DBS Bank Ltd, Emirates Advocates Taiwan (Emirates Trade Commission), GoldBank of Taiwan, Google Taiwan, HVB Bank, KPMG, L'Oréal Taiwan, McKinsey & Company Taiwan, PeopleSearch Taiwan, SABIC Asia Pacific Pte Ltd, Starbucks Coffee, Taiwan Stock Exchange Corporation (TSEC)