Friday Foto 8

The essence of tapas in Madrid

For the Birds

If you ask someone from Catalonia what they think of my adopted region of Spain, Extremadura, you might unfortunately get a derogatory remark likening the area to Africa. Worse yet, they wouldn't be doing so in reference to the wide open spaces and conserved natural areas that are to be found out here...but that is another story.

As the weather gets milder here and this unseasonably cold winter finally loosens its grip, Extremadura plays host to travelers from all over the world, winged ones that is. Birds from Europe on their way to Africa and vice versa meet here out in the beautiful 'dehesas' that make up some of Europe's last undeveloped areas.

Coinciding with this concentration of birds, the area plays host to an international bird watching fair from 27 February to 1 March in Villareal de San Carlos, Monfrague, Caceres. The Feria Internacional de Turismo Ornitológico (Extremadura Birdwatching Fair) is designed to raise awarness to the great birding opportunities in a region that is only a short flight away from most European Capitals.

New Piece in Go Nomad on Northern Iran

If you're familiar with the terrors that taxi travel can pose around the world. Click over to Go Nomad's site and check out my latest piece on the perils of heading to the Azeri border in a shared taxi through Northern Iran.

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A composite picture of the Bahamas and the Costa Brava Photograph: Albert Gea/Reuters and Dorgie Productions/Getty

Which destination would you choose?

Seems like the Spanish tourist board thought the same and decided to use a picture taken in the Bahamas rather that one taken here in Spain in their latest campaign.

The funny thing is that even when confronted, they don't seem to be too repentant and freely admitted it. I guess you have to give them a little credit, at least for being honestly dishonest?

I've been living in Spain off and on for years now and I must admit I avoid the concrete coasts like the plague. I do have to tip my hat to them though, no matter what, the hoards seem to come back, don't they?

A funny photo montage here.

Friday Foto 7

A wintertime view of a cold and snowy Segovia.

Makes we want to head straight for Las Cuevas del Duque and have a few glasses of wine with some Chorizo a la Hoya.

Armchair Art Museums

Crisis got you down? Dying to get to Madrid but can't quite make the airfare? Well Google and the world famous Prado museum in Madrid have teamed up so that you can enjoy the museum from the comfort of your home. Literally stroke by stroke you can view some of the museum's most famous pictures. Or if you are planning a trip to Madrid, take advantage and plan your route through the recently expanded museum.

Sure it's not like waiting in line to get in free on Sundays, but...

Click here for more.

Wondering What the Templars Were Doing in Trevejo, Spain

Walking through the small, lonely mountaintop village of Trevejo, you'll often find yourself alone with the sheep and goats that roam among the ancient stone houses. Perched atop the mountain, the Templar castle of Trevejo surveys the Sierra de Gata along the Portuguese border. Built on the ruins of an Arabic fortress, this 15th-century castle was built by the Templar order of St. John of Jerusalem. The locals have long dug up the mythical treasure, but at least on clear days you can see little white dots that are actually villages in Portugal. After enjoying the fantastic views, climb down the mountain and enjoy the distinctive punchy wines that are produced and enjoyed in the region. Also published on Trazzler.

Even the Crows are Packing Up

On my first encounter with Tehran, I didn't even leave the airport. Though it seems like an odd place to transit, I had found a cheap flight from Baku to Dubai with a very long layover in Tehran. Customs was long, but so was the stopover.

The second time was arriving from the north in the huge, sprawling city that sits at the foot of extremely high mountains like some Andean capital. A mass of more than 12 million people, each it seems with their own cars and their own ideas of traffic lanes...but it somehow works.

Crossing the streets in the city is an art, albeit a dangerous one...one where you see people dancing amidst 6 lanes of speeding traffic at all hours of the day. This traffic however leads to the thick mass of smog that snuggles up to the skirts of the mountain and often obscures the city from the expensive terraces that overlook the city.

Apparently the pollution has reached levels to where even the crows can no longer take it and they are packing up and deserting the city. Taking their cue from nightingales and pigeons, the hardy black bird is deserting the city.

"The continued existence of crows, particularly with the departure of other birds, had given us hope that wildlife could survive in the city. With their migration that hope is fading and our concern over the destructiveness of urban environments has deepened."

If the crows can't take it...time to think about investing some of that oil money in a metro system don't you think?

Friday Foto 6

View from the Oljeitu Mausoleum in Soltaniyeh, Iran.

Top 10 Hostels I've Never Stayed In

How many times have you walked into your dorm room in a hostel and run into who I like to call, the Hostel Pros?

You know who I mean.

That person who has been staying there for weeks and has invaded every corner of the room with their stuff and immediately lets you know that they know everything there is to be known about the place. These same people have generally been traveling for awhile, have seen all there is to see in the city but never seem to leave the grounds. They're on a first name basis with the guy at the desk and for some reason think that the length of their stay has granted them the right to one of the bathrooms available.

While the Hostel Pro will probably never disappear, it does seem that Hostels are no longer places you only stay on your first trip abroad. According to some there are more than 1.7 million hostel beds worldwide and I'm sure those don't include informal places that opt not to pay the association counting the beds.

Seems that they are getting so mainstream that they have even started an award, the Hoscars.

"These Oscars for hostels (see what they've done there?) are among the most democratic awards around with no fewer than 800,000 Hostelworld.com customers rating more than 20,000 hostels over the last twelve months according to six criteria - character, security, location, staff, fun and cleanliness- to produce the definitive World Top Ten Hostels chart."

And where is the best hostel in the world you might ask? Well look no further than nearby Lisbon. Not only does it have the best Hostel in the world, but the top 3 with another coming in at number 8! The others being in such diverse places as Beijing, Cardiff, Barcelona, Krakow and Florence.

10 places I'll probably never stay in judging by the prices listed in the above link, but just maybe they will draw away the Pros from the places further down the list in the Lonely Planet.

Photo Top Right from here.

Watching Civilizations Cross Paths in Ancient Bosra, Syria

In Bosra—a crossroads in the desert just an hour and half south of Damascus—the Roman world intersects the Arabic in an ancient theater turned fortress. You can imagine watching a classical play while a battle rages beyond the massive walls that were built around the free-standing amphitheater. Every summer international concerts are held in less hostile conditions where the only thing you will have to contend with is the intense summer heat. It was also here that the Muslim prophet met his first Christian and developed a positive feeling for the religion's followers. Also published on Trazzler.