I don’t know whether you get to a certain age and you begin to get nostalgic or perhaps you just want to relive your youth. It might be the good old school reunion that pulls you back to your home town and you realise what a great place it was to grow up. One or all of those made me recently organise a mini tour of the Scottish Borders. With no family now living in the area, I hadn’t explored this part of the world for over 20 years so I was … [Read more...]
Archives for August 2016
Experiencing the Chaos of Jakarta
By the time I reached my hotel and drifted off it was 2am. I woke early the next morning and wandered out exploring the streets of Mangga Dua - a section of this sprawling city that seems to be a cross between New Delhi and Dhaka. The roads are a sensory stream of noise and action - from motorbikes, three wheeled motorized rickshaw taxis, the ubiquitous Blue Bird Taxis, bicycles and people walking. Throw in a torrential downpour (after all this … [Read more...]
Cooking Class at Petra Kitchen
One of the most fascinating aspects for me about traveling Internationally is tasting food from different cultures and regions. What we think of Middle-Eastern food in the United States is a generalization of a wide range of countries based upon a few dishes which have become westernized. In actuality, within even one country - there can be dramatic culinary differences based on spices used and preparation styles. The culinary traditions of … [Read more...]
Plan your trip during these interesting festivals in Singapore
Festivals and peak seasons are always the best time to visit a holiday destination, and that applies for Singapore as well. Singapore celebrates three main festivals - One for the Chinese, one for Christians and one for the Chinese. This article talks about the top three festivals in Singapore. With its multi-racial populace, Singapore celebrates numerous festivals regularly. In the event that you anticipate going to Singapore, try to … [Read more...]
The Sealous in Africa by Robert J. Ross
This impressive and weighty book focuses on the Sealous region in southeastern Tanzania. The intimate collection of photography contained within is dominated by the diversity of wildlife that lives here. The Sealous is one of the largest 'still wild' areas left on the planet. It is a reserve where no people live and no permanent structures are permitted within it's borders. The photographs displayed within the book represent fours years of … [Read more...]
7 Tips for Saving Money in Iceland
Iceland had long been at the top of my list of countries to visit. Everything I saw and learned about the island of roughly 320,000 people drew me in. The country’s unique landscapes have served as the background for the popular TV show “Game of Thrones”, the movie “The Secret Life of Walter Mitty” (and others), and music videos for The Saturdays (my favorite), Bon Iver, and Justin Bieber. Despite Iceland’s limited population, Icelanders are … [Read more...]
Visit San Marino – August 2016
San Marino is entirely land locked surrounded by the Italian borders. It is only 10 km from the Adriatic sea - the country is so small that it does not have its own International airport, but Rimini about 30 minutes away has both an airport and a train station. There are no border formalities - if you want a tourist visa placed in your passport, simply stop by the Tourist Information Office (small fee applies). The country is divided into what … [Read more...]