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Through the veins of Europe and beyond

Ronda - De Locos Tapas

SPAIN | Tuesday, 13 May 2014 | Views [671]

Ronda, inspiration for Ernest Hemingway’s For Whom the Bell Tolls , home of bullfighting & most importantly the location of De Locos Tapas . This restaurant, located on the outskirts of the old town, just inside the city wall is easily ... Read more >


Climbing Los Riscos - Or rather, do not climb Los Riscos

SPAIN | Tuesday, 13 May 2014 | Views [692]

The stones were bouncing down along the mountainside. I pressed my body against the rugged mountain, panting. My hand grabbing the edge of my phone which moments before had been sliding down towards the steep drop before me.    ... Read more >

Tags: andalucia, cartajima, climbing, hiking, los riscos, off road, trekking


Photos: Spain

SPAIN | Tuesday, 13 May 2014 | Photo Gallery


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Cafe Florian

ITALY | Friday, 9 May 2014 | Views [428]

An almost non existent breeze still managed to find its way all the way from the piazza into the café. I leaned back into the velvet-upholstered chair and observed the wall paintings as I waited for my order to arrive. Beautiful men and women ... Read more >

Tags: cafe florian, eating, goethe, san marco, venezia, venice


Château Minerve

FRANCE | Friday, 9 May 2014 | Views [337]

The tower surrounded by birds is all that remains of  Château Minerve, which was besieged by Simon de Montfort in 1210. Following the massacre of Béziers in 1209 Château Minerve had provided a refuge for escaping Cathars. However, ... Read more >

Tags: cathars, crusaders, minerve, siege


Opera in the Roman Arena

ITALY | Friday, 9 May 2014 | Views [426]

The crowd was growing quiet as the darkness settled over the arena. A rustling noise announced that the candles that had been handed out at the entrance were being unwrapped. The few with lighters lit their candles and slowly the fire spread across benches ... Read more >

Tags: events, opera, roman arena, verona


Songs from Carcassonne

FRANCE | Friday, 9 May 2014 | Views [330]

The vaults above me point towards the sky. In an art history class a long time ago we were taught that this was an attempt to reach for the heavens and to glorify God.  Gothic, someone named it. The light streaming in through the windows filtered ... Read more >

Tags: carcassonne, medieval, songs


Photos: France

FRANCE | Friday, 9 May 2014 | Photo Gallery

Other photos from France 2013
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Photos: The Pyrinees

FRANCE | Friday, 9 May 2014 | Photo Gallery


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Photos: Italy

ITALY | Friday, 9 May 2014 | Photo Gallery


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Midnight Train to Paris

ITALY | Friday, 9 May 2014 | Views [550]

Padova train station 20.34 Sunday evening The darkness has started to descend and the people on the platform increasingly have to rely on the florescent lights above. The sky is turning an azurian blue but keeps exploding into a sea of white as ... Read more >

Tags: italy, padova, rain, station, train, travel


On the Road - Old fashioned style

ITALY | Thursday, 8 May 2014 | Views [367]

I have the feet of a traveller, a pilgrim. Covered as they are in blisters, sores and dirty. A permanent ‘X’ embellishing them even when they are bare, a mark of the time spent in my sandals on dusty roads. Each weary step takes me forwards, ... Read more >

Tags: hiking, italy, pilgrim, umbria, walking


The Prayer

MOROCCO | Saturday, 3 May 2014 | Views [469]

It is time. I stir as I hear a faint crackling through some far away speakers. I turn over, waiting. The sheet has since long left my bed and I have spread my limbs to get the best effect of the fan which stands prompted on the wicker chair next to my ... Read more >

Tags: marrakech, morocco, night, sleep


Night in Marrakech

MOROCCO | Friday, 2 May 2014 | Views [366] | Scholarship Entry

The heat was settling and the first cool winds were sweeping in from the desert. The sky slowly turning from a clear blue to an unapologetic black, penetrated by the white light of a thin moon shiver. Tunes from the snake charmer’s flute float to my rooftop ... Read more >

Tags: 2014 Travel Writing Scholarship - Euro Roadtrip


Summer nights at the Duomo

ITALY | Sunday, 9 Jun 2013 | Views [350]

The wind is making the shutters shake. When the shutters were first installed the workmen must have decided that the fastenings must not be too close to the shutters, they could after all lock in place and no one would want to be stuck with immovable ... Read more >

Tags: amelia, duomo, women


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