Friday Foto 5

As winter continues its grip here on supposedly sunny Spain, today's Foto is meant to remind me of the joys of sitting outside drinking beer (you choose your beverage).

This was taken while I lived in Vientiane, Laos, sometime in September when the Mekong was still very high. While living there, one of my almost daily activities was to head down to the river as the sun was walking or biking down as the intense daytime heat abated, albeit slightly. The growl of the Tuk Tuks on the busy road behind were left at the top of the hill as I found a plastic chair and enjoyed a cold Beerlao or 5 and watched the sun go down over Thailand.

Could use some of that warmth now!

Riding the Rails Cheaply

To follow up on yesterday's post on Spanish train travel, I thought I would link over to a good overview by the Man in Seat 61 who has written a short piece on how to ride the rails around Europe without losing too many of your Euros.

All Aboard!

Careful of the Greenwash

Rail seems to be all the rage lately on the progressive travel radar here in Europe, and rightly so...but be careful, Greenwash lurks under the carbon-light promises.

Just over a week ago an article in the Guardian was gushing over the fact that Spain's new high speed rail link between the countries 2 major cities Barcelona and Madrid was plucking high carbon travelers from the skies...and rightly so. But at what cost?

True, people can now whizz across the country at a fraction of the carbon cost that flying the same route would do, and really in about the same time. BUT, what they don't tell you is that in opening the high speed line, they have shut down all regular trains between the 2 cities, thus forcing those who can't afford the over 100€ ticket onto carbon spewing buses that clog the growing road system here in Spain. At set times the supposedly public Spanish rail system RENFE slash prices and claim that tickets are cheap, but rock up to the counter and see what kind of a surprise you get.

I'm a huge fan of trains and love the idea that jet setters are opting for a greener alternative. I just don't see why it has to be at the expense of sticking the rest of us on buses. As the high speed rail links expand here in Spain, expect more of us plying the motorways aboard uncomfortable rolling carbon spewers.

A Bit of Local Press

Stumbled upon my name in one of the local papers the other day. It seems that one of their journalists heard about my article in the Toronto Star and gave me a little local publicity.

Who knows, might lead to something?

Tasting Sea Spray With the Killer Whales in Port McNeil. B.C, Canada

After a beautiful drive up Vancouver Island through old-growth forests, you get to the little fishing village of Port McNeil. From here, whale-watching tours depart down the Johnstone Strait for some of the best killer whale viewing in the world. Early in the morning, you cut through the misty archipelago, searching for the resident pods that migrate through the area. It doesn't take long to find them and soon enough you will see them jumping in the air and scratching themselves on the polished stones near the shore. If killer whales weren't enough, you also might get lucky enough to spot dahls porpoises, sea lions, minke whales, bears, eagles, and even humpback whales. All of this, surrounded by the spectacular beauty that only the Pacific Coast of Canada can provide. Also published on Trazzler.

The Most Visited Site in Spain

Perhaps not surprisingly the most visited site in Spain in 2008 was...?

I ran a little poll the other day and got a flood of hits, the answers were:

The Prado Museum (Madrid)

1 (33%)

The Sagrada Familia (Barcelona)

0 (0%)
The Alhambra (Granada)

2 (66%)

The Great Mosque (Cordoba)

0 (0%)
The Cathedral in Toledo

0 (0%)

And the real answer?

Down in Granada, the beautiful Arab palace that over looks the city received 3 096 829 visitors last year. Believe it or not a 0.78% decrease from 2007...

Friday Foto 4

Continuing on with the thread from my last post, I thought that I'd post a photo of what may be the most beautiful mosque in Libya. The mosque of Murad Agha was built in what is called the Al-Andalus style with a square minaret, it is an easy day trip from Tripoli. Just find the shared taxis going to Tajura and jump out when you see the mosque. When I was there it was closed, but someone quickly found the man with the key and let me wander around inside. Inside there really isn't much to see, but it is curious that most of the pillars had been taken from nearby Leptis Magna.

Smiling and Bargaining Over Berber Delights in Tripoli, Libya

If you somehow managed to jump through the right bureaucratic hoops to get in independently or if you stepped off one of the luxury cruise liners that now stop daily in Tripoli, you won't be disappointed. A land where only the government can advertise and Gaddafi watches are the hot tourist item, the until-recently-forgotten Old City of Tripoli is a crumbling mix of Sub-Saharan migrants waiting for their chance to cross into Europe and petrodollar-fueled gentrification. Sleepy shop owners used to high-end tourists and diplomats, watch as you stroll by, offering tea and sharing their mutual curiosity. Treasures from the inner Sahara whose sands blow into the streets can be found, but for a price worthy of Aladdin... after the cave.

Also published on Trazzler.

Friday Foto 3

After being being designated a sensitive Military Area and therefore off limits for many years, the true end of the Trans-Siberian is once again open to visitors. Contrary to what you might think, Vladivostok (a mere 9,289 kms away from Moscow) in the summer is actually quite nice. True, there is a train that runs 10,267 kms all the way to Pyongyang, but that would be another adventure.

More on trains at the best train travel sight on the web, here.

Sacred Earth

Photo by Martin Gray

These beautiful shots from the Guardian a while back. The following from the site.

"Acclaimed photographer and anthropologist Martin Gray has spent the last 20 years on a pilgrimage photographing and exploring more than 1,000 sacred sites in 80 countries. What follows is a selection from his new book, Sacred Earth, published by Sterling."

I've always wanted to visit northern Sudan (pictured above). It seems to me one of the most beautiful, remote places on earth. When compared to the circus that lies beneath the Pyramids in Cairo, even more so. I've heard that you can camp right underneath them in Sudan, anyone ever done it?

Finding Shade in a Palace on the Caspian in Baku, Azerbaijan

This is why you have come so far. With the Caspian reaching out to the steppe of Central Asia in front of you, the warm winds of the Middle East swirling up from below, and the cool breezes from the Caucasus mountains sweeping down from the north—a mix of styles awaits you in the Old City of Baku. Set among a very eclectic ambiance of embassies and relaxing cats, the Shirvanshah Palace in the middle of Baku is an oasis from another time. Baku's recent communist legacy melts away as you feel the Silk Road's pulse beneath you. The palace is a reminder that for centuries Baku was a vital stop on the Silk Road before becoming the Oil Capital of the world in the early 1900s.

Also published on Trazzler.

It's Cold Out There!

Pascal Parrot/Getty Images
Marseille, France: Pink flamingos rest at the Vaccares pond

As the cold sweeps south, Spain is seeing some of the coldest temperatures it has seen in 30 years. Temperatures dipped down to around -4 here in Caceres the other night and some say that it was even colder. I do hope the bougainvilleas make it.

Big news for travelers is that they had to even shut Madrid's Barajas Airport down for a few hours yesterday due to heavy snow. Word is that there was a skier reported in Madrid's El Retiro park. (more pics here)

While it contrasts with the image that most of the world has of "Sunny Spain", those of us who live here and have spent winters here know that a winter in Spain can be cold indeed...especially if you spent all your money on an Air Conditioner! I'm thinking of buying a coal brazier!

Friday Foto 2

Keeping in mind the article I published at the beginning of the month in the Toronto Star, I thought I would continue highlighting some of the sites of my adopted city. A fine view of the Palacio de Moctezuma here in Caceres at sunset.

Istanbul by Istanbullus

I was lucky enough to have traveled through Istanbul this summer on my way to Syria and absolutely loved the city! It is truly one of the 'world's cities' that vibrates as soon as you step into its streets.

To add to our luck we were hosted by 2 excellent Couchsurfers, some of the most welcoming that we have ever stayed with. Both lived in distinct neighbourhoods (Beyoglu and Taksim, Orkatoy), which really gave us a sense of what Istanbul really is...an enormous net of neighbourhoods. My guidebook, Orhan Pamuk's Istanbul related this, but getting to see the city from these perspectives only made it more real.

If you want to get under its skin, start with the book mentioned above and then check out the Guardian's latest link to Istanbullus blogging about their city.

Looks like the city that bridges two continents is going to be the next "in" spot, but no worries, the city is plenty big enough to get lost in the crowd, as long as you try.

Los 3 Reyes Magos

photo from Wikipedia
The Christmas season continues here in Spain. While other countries are packing up their Christmas trees, today is traditionally the big celebration for the niños here on the Iberian peninsula. The Feast of Epiphany (January 6th) is the day where the 3 wise men or the 3 kings of the orient, bring gifts to children.

Each one of the Magi is supposed to represent a different continent, Europe (Caspar), Asia (Melchior) and Africa (Balthasar) and on January 5th every city in Spain has a parade (Cabalgata de Reyes) where they go through the streets throwing out sweets and taking letters from children. Then on that night the kiddies leave out food for the kings and the camels (sound familiar?) and awake to the presents. Some families shine their shoes and leave them out in hopes of receiving something more than a lump of coal.

Some Spanish tradition holds that actually 2 of the 3 wise men came from Yemen and one year I spent Christmas Eve camped out on a deserted beach called Bir Ali just below the ruins of the ancient city Cana. There are few better ways to celebrate Christmas than swimming in the beautiful Gulf of Arabia with wild dolphins that happen by. Just you, your driver and of course the Army guy there to 'protect' you.

On the way down the coast to Aden, we also stopped at another of the legendary homes of one of the wise men, Azan. A small village of beautiful adobe homes that is definitely worth the slight detour enroute to Aden.

Two extremely different countries tied together by legend.

Crowding in with Cars Sailing from Fushiki, Japan to Vladivostok

Ride the rails to the end of the line to a place that feels like a Japanese island invaded by Russians. For the Russians indeed are coming...to buy cars. Twice a week, thousands of cars are ferried across the sea of Japan over to Vladivostok from this sleepy port city to sate the growing eastern Russian demand. Ride upstairs in high class or book below but don't expect to take a dip in the ferry's pool, as it will be filled to the brim with used cars. Not only the pool, but seemingly every available inch is used for cars, giving you the sensation of crossing the seas on a floating parking garage. 2 days later, stuffed to the brim with the included onboard meals and with an inevitable vodka hangover, you disembark in Vladivostok ready for the Trans-Siberian.

Also published on the Trazzler site

Incredible Photos

Photograph: Olaf Kraak/EPA

I was browsing the Guardian's usually stunning 24 hours in pictures section the other day and they had a 'best of 2008' series (actually there are several) and they highlighted an amazing photographer named Uriel Sinai. Definitely not your average travel shots, but that's the beauty of it.

New Piece in the Toronto Star

I recently published a piece on my adopted hometown in the Saturday edition of the Toronto Star. If you are thinking about visiting Spain, click over to the article and make sure to include Caceres in your itinerary.

No, Not Far...

Before the millennium turned, when the Year 2000 virus was going to be the end as we knew it, I was hiking in Zimbabwe far enough away I had thought from the clutches of the Windows breakdown. I was simply wandering, looking for some petroglyphs that I had heard were in the area but had no idea where I was really going.

It was winter in Zim, the sky was a clear blue and the grass was tall. The temperature was neither cold nor hot but the sun was warm on my face and arms and my legs felt light. Zimbabwe wasn't the hell it is now. Rumblings of the forthcoming disaster we now see were being heard in the beer halls across the country, but at the time they were only rumblings, like a terrible storm or story in the distance.

Wandering through the savannah I came across some locals on the path and they asked me where I was going. I mentioned the petroglyphs and they told me to follow them as they were on their way and said that I was a little silly walking out there.

"Why," I asked.

"Because there are lions in this area," was their matter of fact answer.

Suddenly every Acacia tree became the perfect shading spot for a group of lions to rest and I realized just how long the grass was.

Now a bit nervous I asked, "How far are the petroglyphs?"

"No, not far," was their response as they went on talking about life.

As we walked they explained to me more about the rumblings I had heard in the beer halls. About how people who weren't from Mugabe's tribe were being sent to fight in the neighbouring Congo, essentially with a one-way ticket.

Still we walked and still the acacia trees looked like perfect places for an ambush.

Not wanting to be a pain, I asked them if they had been walking long.

"No, not far," was again their response.

We continued through the savannah and while the acacia trees never stopped looking dangerous, my impromptu guides pointed out animals hidden in the long grass that I would have never seen. After what seemed like a few hours we arrived to the clutch of huge boulders where the petroglyphs were. A quick goodbye and my new found friends, who had invited me for drinks in their village later, were about to leave when I asked them if I would have to walk to get there.

"No, not far," they smiled and walked off.

I thought about it for a second and realized, really did it matter? When traveling it is often the journey that is more interesting than the destination.

Friday Foto

I'm going to try and start a new series on this blog where every Friday a new picture from around the world goes up.

In honour of my recent publication on my adopted hometown here in Caceres, here's my favourite tower. The torre de hierba...10th century Almohad construction that changes colours as the sun goes down.