Posts/Entries

All posts/entries, for now, from over two decades of global travel. And a few colourful tags, too.

Mystras, Greece

Mystras, Greece

“In a country where antiquity is king, the fascinating tumbledown complex of churches and monasteries of the fortified UNESCO-listed mountain retreat of Mystras, last foothold anywhere for the once-mighty Byzantium Empire, feels like something of an upstart; it is only, at most, 800 years old.”

Sparta, Greece

Sparta, Greece

“Conscious of the past, efforts were made at the time to rebuild the town so as to reflect its ancient pre-eminence, but the town planners fell someway short. In their defence, they did not have a lot to play with; it’s obvious Ancient Sparta was more focused on building legendary armies as opposed to cities. Plus, it’s hard for a structure to outlive antiquity if it was never constructed in the first place.”

Olympia, Greece

Olympia, Greece

“If the present-day archaeological site of Ancient Olympia, the former celebrated sanctuary of Greek supreme god Zeus and the birthplace of the Olympic Games, doesn’t win gold for being Greece’s most redolent ancient site then it would at the very least be assured of a podium finish.”

Peloponnese, Greece

Peloponnese, Greece

”The Greek Peloponnese Peninsula heavy-hitting history trilogy: Ancient Olympia, the once-great sanctuary to Zeus and birthplace of the Olympic Games; Sparta, the ancient city-state famous for its military prowess; and the UNESCO-listed lofty heights of Mystras, the last bastion of power for the once-mighty Byzantium Empire.”

Zákynthos, Greece

Zákynthos, Greece

“A now-iconic image… the MV Panagiotis… blown off course during adverse weather in October 1980… sitting pretty here ever since in the middle of a secluded white-sand beach and surrounded by towering white limestone cliffs… it is beyond dazzling, easily one of the most picture-perfect scenes I’ve ever pointed a (zoom) lens at.”

Tínos, Greece

Tínos, Greece

“There is more to the Cycladic island of Tínos than the all-encompassing holiness associated with its venerated Church of Virgin Mary/Panagia Evangelistria and its miracle-working icon. But the hulking form of Greece’s major Marian shrine is the only reason I paid the island a visit from nearby Mýkonos meaning that overtly-religious Tínos may just be as adept at drawing tourists as it is pilgrims.”

Delos, Greece

Delos, Greece

“… one of the holiest sanctuaries in Greek mythology, the island is the mythical birthplace of the gods Apollo and his twin sister Artemis. Today, the fascinating archaeological site on the island, one of the most important collections of ancient Greek ruins on earth, preserves the remains of a sanctuary to Apollo and Artemis and the once-magnificent city, a bustling commercial centre, that developed around it.”

Mýkonos, Greece

Mýkonos, Greece

“It’s not the exclusive celeb and jet set hangout it used to be in the 50s and 60s, when such A-listers as Jackie O, Maria Callas, Marlon Brando, Grace Kelly and Elizabeth Taylor all vacationed here, but fabulous gay-friendly Mýkonos is still the Cyclades glamour capital, not to mention its hedonistic party central.”

Páros, Greece

Páros, Greece

“Páros… was all the more charming for what it wasn’t – it wasn’t busy, it wasn’t expensive, and it wasn’t as ostentatious as elsewhere. But it was still sufficiently Cyclades-esque swank and downright seductive, almost coquettishly so. And pretty. Oh-so pretty. Two islands in and one was quickly discovering that ‘oh-so pretty’ is par of the course on these Cyclades isles.”

Santoríni, Greece

Santoríni, Greece

“… a somewhat exclusive destination of unparalleled global appeal, a place-to-see-before-you-die location par excellence. Oozing romance and voguish in the extreme, its world-famous landscape, vistas, architecture, and cave house infinity pools have graced the pages of nearly every glossy travel or lifestyle magazine ever printed and formed the backdrop for many a bikini-clad fashion model shoot, staged social media influencer selfie, or dreamy wanderlust-inspiring GoPro video footage.”

Island Hopping, Greece

Island Hopping, Greece

“… pick your island of choice. Better still, pick a few. Check the ferry schedule and set sail. Settle into a quaint room. Wander among whitewashed lanes. Wash down your souvlaki with a beer or a carafe of wine in a local taverna. And when all that is done you can hop to the next island and do it all over again. C’est la belle vie Greek style, one sun-drenched island at a time.”

Ohrid, Macedonia

Ohrid, Macedonia

“There are two versions of Ohrid here in this placid region of southwest Macedonia: one is a small hilly resort town with a compact walled Old Quarter of traditional houses with red-tiled roofs, medieval churches, monasteries, open-air ruins, and a centuries-old fortress towering above it all; the other is a shimmering lake straddling the mountainous border between Macedonia and Albania, one of Europe’s deepest, oldest, and most picturesque bodies of water harbouring a unique and UNESCO-protected ecosystem. Two reasons to visit when, for me at least, one would be draw enough. Fortunately, where Ohrid is concerned they come as a package.”

Skopje, Macedonia

Skopje, Macedonia

“Most of what bemused me about the city today wasn’t even here a decade ago. Millions have been spent in recent years turning the centre of the city into something of a bizarre theme park of garish architecture – some 130 structures (buildings, statues, bridges, water features, and even a triumphal arch) were erected between 2010 and 2014 as part of the Skopje 2014 project, one of Europe’s biggest urban renewal schemes centred around both banks of the city’s Vardar River.”

Kosovo

Kosovo

“It’s affordable, gritty, youthful, ambitious & friendly, a very new country dealing with a troubled past while looking towards a brighter future. Here and now Kosovo also has bears; UNESCO-listed monuments; and a likable capital city boasting 200,000+ hospitable locals, a not-so-old Old Quarter, a bizarre man crush on a former US president, life-size lettering…great street scenes, and some standout architecture, including what must surely be a contender for the ugliest building on earth. Yes, it’s a curious mix alright, but one that somehow works…”

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Twin Lakes west bengal Essaouira Srebrenica Montana Transylvania Minneapolis Bethlehem Burgundy Israel Jamestown New England Mesoamerica Sarajevo Aysen Falmouth hilo Milan Intercourse Matauri Bay Tuscany Gradil Tingri boquete Nice Shenandoah Kona kuta Ingapirca Nuweiba Ait Benhaddou Chiloe Santo Domingo Sint Maarten / Saint Martin Panajachel Lombardy Tashkent delhi caye caulker cancun Bariloche chetumal Georgia Dades Gorge Palolem Page Nikko Tallahassee Naushki Ipiales El Chaupi Huaraz Brainerd Caleta Tortel Colonial Williamsburg Perm the big island stockholm Taupo Niagara Netherlands Mestia Russia Sofia tomsk New York City Maracaibo Skye East Asia Lhasa North Carolina Italy Rockfish Gap karnataka kollam Atlanta Samarkand Missouri Philippines Kansas City South Korea Colonia del Sacramento Delos Antarctica Prattville Littleton Yekaterinburg Barentsburg Leadville Sinai Dayton Abu Dhabi Concepción de Ataco Torrington busan Santa Roas de Copan Pokhara Knoxville Ullapool boston Istanbul Slovakia Lesser Antilles Jackson Hole Istria Peninsula Crown Point Jenkins kosovo Turkey Gori Bloubergstrand Charleston North Dakota Gansbaai chiang mai Zante Gyantse Illinois Foz do Iguacu Toledo Mexico Colleville Sur Mer Jordan Guiyang Owensboro sunshine coast Kodari Cape Cod Baltic States Loja Iceland Nags Head Cannon Ball Hartland cameron highlands Verona Cologne Teec Nos Pos Santa Marta Treasure Beach Marigot porto Chiclayo Indonesia Cannes Williamsburg Rissani Norway Nashville Brussels Woodstock Belgrade Friendship Highway Guilin Te Anu Panguitch Willemstad copan north car oslo Scandinavia new south wales Varadero Greece Nacoochee Village Mississippi Delta Tetouan Bishkek Oregon Mtskheta Morocco Budapest Nasca Midelt Cape of Good Hope Pyramiden Sandy Hook Sucre Mobile Chile mysore Heartland Urumqi Vermont Rhode Island Greenfield Tegucigalpa Damascus alleppey Jacmel penang Simon's Town Cap-Haitien Paris Kolkata / Calcutta Andijon Hatch Cartagena Naples Pennsylvania Syracuse Polynesia Essex Bloomington India West Yellowstone El Alamein rajasthan Luxor Lithuania Fengdu Franschhoek Madaba Buenos Aires Cordell santa ana Tena oahu seward leshan utah Lancaster Cote d'Azur / French Riviera Rotorua Oman North America Mississippi Vatican City El Chalten Nebraska Arabia Kuwait Elim ericeira melbourne British Columbia Whangarei Dahab kerala Plovdiv Stanstead Cochrane Brasov homer Almaty Ohrid Saint Petersburg Nara Indiana Gyeongju Grand Lake Lake Ohrid Jersey Shore Yongin Aspen Havana Poland Lubec Alaska Sneedville Galapagos Islands utila Sao Paulo Negril Maharashtra Guanajuato sydney Budva Belize Delft Bern South Dakota Pula Fort Yates Montego Bay Macau Jacksonville Hong Kong Bentonia Fenwick Island Mount Cook Port Waikato Los Angeles United Kingdom Kentucky Thailand bay islands seoul Piura Selma yangshou Camaguey Florence Aqaba Drake Passage Giza Bran Sunauli Mystras Jeju Dorasan Venice Armenia Catalonia Erg Chebbi Roseau Campobello Island Parikia Scottsbluff 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Lauterbrunnen Toronto casablanca Saint Stephen Hatteras Island Lima Maynardville Tongariro yucatan Bremen Ilha de Santa Catarina Washington Brian Head Osh Dominican Republic Longyearbyen Tuymen Yerevan Jebel Toubkal California Argentina Aviemore Spain Massachusetts Kota Kinabalu Nuwera Eliya El Jadida Jackson Uyuni Cambodia pushkar South Ossetia Soufriere byron bay Florianopolis Laramie leon Annapurna Panama Tinos New Zealand - South Island Cusco Svalbard Netherlands Antilles Trinidad chengdu Grand Cayman Puno Front Royal San Juan Del Sur Warsaw St Paul Paraguay Puerto Natales Malaga Ushuaia Montpelier Nevada brisbane Trinidad & Tobago Valparaiso Shelly Beach Wyoming Maryland Wilmington San Jose Castries Custer Rome kenai peninsula St Cloud Sepilok Logan Rugby Virpazar las vegas Puerto Ayora Coyhaique New York Japan The Cyclades Olympia Hispaniola Crow Agency Tobolsk Tokyo Kotor Datong Skopje Ontario Gangnam Ecuador Montanita Perast Asuncion Australia Minnesota maui Dijon Rhineland Burdine Prishina Appalachia Ouarzazate key west Port-au-Prince Switzerland Portugal Kerry Quito Portland victoria Vicksburg Bangkok Punta Cana The Arctic Adirondacks Vilnius Coeburn varanasi Suez Belgium Puerto Lopez Romania Sligo Auschwitz/Birkenau Lago De Yojoa Ping An Salt Lake City Quebec City Berlin Burlington coba Vienna Tivat Monte Carlo Omaha New Zealand - North Island Clarksdale Bodie Island Navajo Nation Estes Park West Virginia Costa del Sol Jungfrau Ciudad del Este Sparta Macclenny Stirling Washington D.C.

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