Ruta de la Plata quick Detour

If you're walking the ancient Via de la Plata on your way to Santiago, by now your blisters have hardened into calluses and you scoff at a mere 15-mile walk. You've sung in the Romans' amphitheater, crossed their bridges, seen that cork actually does come from trees, and figured out that olives can't be eaten straight off the branch, the sour way... but you haven't seen everything yet. Hidden in a grove of cork and olive trees overlooking the Sierra de Montanchez lies a secret that's been kept for more than thirteen centuries. The Visigothic Basilica of Santa Lucia del Trampal is the perfect spot for a picnic with ham from the nearby sierra and wine from the village. Both will help you forget that tomorrow's walk is even longer.

#adventure #architecture #history #wine #outdoors #mountains #historic #picnic #getaway #church #caminodesantiago #ham #christian #rural #walking #jamon #trekking #ancientculture #country #ancient #extremadura #route #oldstone #sierra #8thcentury #st.jamesway #rutadelaplata #viadelaplata #visigothicart #jamoniberico #visigoths #visigothic #silverroute #jamondemontanchez #ancientroad

Originally published on Trazzler

Chasing Battuta to Gibraltar

Monkeys, Englishmen with Andalusian accents, duty-free shops, tea sets, English breakfasts, pints instead of cañas, sunburns in December, the curry you've been craving, and English bookshops... the Rock is something different for everyone. This Mediterranean protuberance has been a thorn in the Spanish conscience ever since the Berber commander Tariq Ibn Ziyad stepped ashore and changed everything back in 711. Al-Andalus was born under these modern-day camera shops, though all that remains of the Muslim presence is the Calahorra tower, whose imposing defensive properties were noted by none other than the intrepid medieval adventurer Ibn Battutah. The fortification still keeps watch over the modern-day sidewalk/runway border with Spain. Talk of the U.K. giving the rocky peninsula back to the Spanish might not make many friends here, but Euros are gladly accepted.

#architecture #history #view #medieval #muslim #castles #straitofgibraltar #spain #mediterranean #islam #fortress #border #tower #british #britishhistory #culturalcrossroads #politics #microcountry #watchtower #8thcentury #juxtaposition #spanishhistory #alandalus #conquest #ibnbattutah #muslimhistory #atalaya

Originally published on Trazzler

A Bit of Iranian Know-How for Semana Santa

Writing in the local paper. Local issues with a global take. I never translate literally and the editor trims at will to make it fit. Here's my version, then theirs.

Long before San (saint) Obama’s time and the recent thaws, I recall sitting at a café in one of the posher neighbourhoods of northern Tehran. Heavy snow still sat up above us on the Alborz mountains, its run off rushing by between the towering green trees that lined the streets that snaked downhill towards the jungle of that huge city. Like now, spring was just around the corner. Young people sat all around us smoking quaylans and drinking tea, unsuccessfully trying to conceal the fact that there was more going on than tea drinking. Religiously obligatory head scarves miraculously clung from the very backs of the heads of the heavily made up young women while the young men pushed the limits of the acceptable length of hair that they could wear. True, they were afraid that the dreaded religious police, the Ershad, might catch them...but that only added to the thrill. Years later, now back in the home of the Enlightenment, old Europe, I recently read that those very same young people have come up with an app that would help detect exactly where the defenders of the islamic regime were stalking. Users point out the location of the morality police and those with jeans that are a bit too tight know when to move on. With Semana Santa (Holy Week) upon us, I wonder if Caceres couldn’t use an app like this. Even the most fervent procession goer can’t say exactly when a procession will eventually pass by and for those of us simply trying to walk home, something like this just make commuting home that much easier or at least save everyone the unfortunate confrontations with the pious who mistakenly believe that their front row spot is being usurped as you cut through. The beating of the drums and the blaring of the horns can let you know when the totering Christs and Virgins are in the area, but exactly where? An app just might be the answer. And if it could save a local from having to take an unexpected detour around the whole old town in order to bring home the groceries, imagine the pains it could save the unknowing tourists. Imagine them finally finding a table, getting the kids settled in and plopping down in expectation of that first cold beer with a little pincho only to be rudely evicted from their cherished seats on the terraces as frantic owners try to avoid the curiously high six thousand euro fine for not removing the tables and chairs before the coned hats march by.

Where the Battuta Trail Begins

“Travel, set out and head for pastures new. Life tastes richer when you've road-worn feet. No water that stagnates is fit to drink for only that which flows is truly sweet.” - Imam Al-Shafi A pilgrimage to the tomb of the medieval world's greatest traveller and chronicler, Ibn Battuta #nonotfar http://nonotfar.blogspot.com.es/search/label/Ibn%20Battutah?m=1 . . . . . . . . #ibnbattuta #ibnbattutah #pilgrimage #literarytravel #worldsgreatesttraveler #moroccotravel #tangiertourism #tangier #medina #tomb #travelwriting #travelwriter #travelerstomb #magrib #maroc #marruecos #viajero #voyageur #visitmorocco #literarypilgrimage

Una publicación compartida por Troy Nahumko (@troynahumko) el Feb 16, 2018 at 12:06 PST