On our return trip to Budapest from Krakow, having driven through Eastern Slovakia, Erika and I decided to drive through the Western side. Our eventual destination, where we would stay the night, was the capital of Slovakia, Bratislava, located just a stone’s throw from the Austrian border. Our thought was to be close enough to…
First, let’s be clear, since I don’t want there to be any misunderstanding. There is an extensive coastline along Morocco’s most southern coast that, as of yet, I am not allowed to enter as a current Peace Corps volunteer. I want to visit Dakhla and Laayoune, insha’Allah, but I can’t. Not yet. So, this is…
Near Ouarzazate, known within country as the Moroccan Hollywood, within the foothills of the High Atlas Mountains, lies an old fortified city called Ait Ben Haddou. The name, roughly translated, means “the clan of the son of Haddou.” Lying at the southern foothills of the High Atlas Mountains and being proximal to trade routes, including access…
On our way back from Spain, we stopped off to see some of northern Morocco. In part, this was to enable me to finally finish my self-appointed task of seeing every UNESCO heritage site in Morocco. We stopped in Tangier for a few days (that’ll be a post later), then headed to Chefchaouen, a small…
No visit to Transylvania is complete without a quick stop at Bran Castle, the reputed home of Vlad III, Prince of Wallachia, a member of the House of Drăculești, also known, using his patronymic, as (Vlad) Drăculea or (Vlad) Dracula and posthumously dubbed Vlad the Impaler. Regarding his nickname, Wikipedia has this to offer: As the…
Yesterday, I went with my friend, Slimane, on an extended bike ride to explore some local Ksars, or Ksor to use the Arabic plural. Ksars are older, enclosed communities whose expansive structures used traditional construction methods, such as mud, hay, and palm trunks. Think of them as expanding apartment complexes that emerged organically around oases. Some…
After all the hustle and bustle of Barcelona, arriving in Seville was somewhat a relief. The city has a wonderful ‘old town,’ where our hotel was located and we spent lots of time wandering around this part of the city. But, the highlight of our time in Seville was getting to see friends from Washington…
Rabat, the capital of Morocco, is a beautiful, modern city on the coast. It has been a nice change from the more rural environment, but I am also eager to return to a smaller, less hectic pace, though the cats around Rabat seem pleasantly unaffected by the pace of life in the big city.
Nicolae Ceaușescu was a brutal dictator that ravaged Romania during his reign before being overthrown and executed during the Romanian Revolution. During his time in power, however, he began the building of an incredible structure though he never saw its completion. Originally called “The People’s Palace,” the Palace of Parliament in Bucharest, Romania, is an…
Today was our first full day in Pamukkale, Turkey. The name means “cotton castle” and it is famous for its travertine cliffs into which Romans, and others, built baths. For centuries, the Pamukkale waters have been seen as a therapeutic treatment for various ills and people migrate here from around the world to bath in…
