Travel, life, loves and laughs.
Ibiza dawns blue and warm, just the way I imagined it to and after a morning at the beach enjoying Ibiza’s blue sky and water we head into Dalt Vila, Ibiza’s old town or ‘upper town’, the walled historical centre from the Middle Ages.… Read the rest
Ibiza Blue. It just goes together. Ibiza is one of the Balearic islands, an archipelago of Spain in the Mediterranean Sea. Although it is well known for the lively nightlife in Ibiza Town and Sant Antoni, where major European nightclubs have summer outposts, it is also home to quiet villages, yoga retreats and beaches for swimming, sun baking, dining and water sports.… Read the rest
The Royal Palace of La Almudaina sits comfortably elevated above the Parc, owning her sweeping views of the marina, although very much dominated by the imposing Cathedral. Perhaps this is why I mistook the entrance at first glance, slightly hidden, somewhat undistinguished and distracted for having to dodge those photographing themselves with the more striking of the two facades in the background.… Read the rest
We start our day in Palma de Majorca at the Parc de la Mar, right in front of La Sau, the Cathedral of Santa Maria of Palma. This incredible Cathedral dominates the skyline of this entire stretch of the old town of this stunning port side city.… Read the rest
It is hard to believe that less than a month ago I was in Lebanon, at the far eastern end of the Mediterranean, and today, I stand on the Rock of Gibraltar, gazing out at the azure sea at the westernmost point of this vast world, considering what it would be like to think the world stops here.… Read the rest
This stunning tower, the Torre de Belém, stands on the banks of the Targus river in Lisbon, the capital of Portugal. It is a landmark dating from the 16th Century. It is a ceremonial gateway to the city and officially a fortification that served as a point of embarkation and disembarkation for Portuguese explorers.… Read the rest
The hop on, hop off tourist bus operators practically mob us as we emerge into Lisbon from the cruise terminal along Av. Infante Don Henrique. However, we have our day more or less mapped out and we grab a taxi and head straight for the Tower of Belém.… Read the rest
Today we are in Vigo, Spain, in the Provence of Galicia on the northwest coast. There has been a port here since the Middle Ages and there is a colorful if not rather violent history of attacks by Vikings, the English and the Turks, not to mention a period of French rule during the Napoleonic era.… Read the rest
Nothing has really prepared me for the enormity of what I am to witness first hand at the site of the ancient city of Baalbek – the historical and cultural significance is overwhelming. In some ways larger and more interesting than either the Roman Forum or the Parthenon, Baalbek exists in Western Lebanon in the Beqaa Valley, nestled between the Mount Lebanon Ranges to the west and Syrian Coastal Mountain Range (Bargylus) to the east.… Read the rest
The Cedars of God, an oasis of precious cedar trees. Specifically the Lebanon cedar which is a species native to the mountains around Bsharri in the Kadisha Valley.
Once the mountains here were covered with forests of cedars.… Read the rest