Europe
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An Unplanned Stop in a Rural Cemetery in Moldova
More Details: An Unplanned Stop in a Rural Cemetery in MoldovaCemeteries always have a draw. Not quite sure if it is purely the inclination to the morbid or something else but, when I drove past this cemetery in Moldova (on my way back to Chisinau after visiting Soroca in the north) and noticed the colorful and unique crosses, I went back to get a quick walk…
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A Stroll around Reykjavik
More Details: A Stroll around ReykjavikOne of the pluses of going to Iceland, besides witnessing the magnificent statement nature makes there, is enjoying visiting somewhere that is manageable in size. One can cross the island in one day from coast to coast thanks for a great ring road that is in pretty good condition (especially, when one considers the climate). …
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On the Camino de Santiago: Day 4 from Palas del Rei to Boente
More Details: On the Camino de Santiago: Day 4 from Palas del Rei to BoenteAfter a great dinner in Palas del Rei and a nice comfortable stay overnight, we left the town on Day 4 to head to Boente, a tiny town and our next overnight. On this day, I would walk 21 km (about 13 miles) in around 5 hours to get to my destination. But we would…
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On the Camino de Santiago: Day 3 from Portomarín to Palas del Rei
More Details: On the Camino de Santiago: Day 3 from Portomarín to Palas del ReiI enjoyed our night in Portomarín as the town had a nice location along the Miño River – and we enjoyed sitting at a bar the night before with a nice wine enjoying the awesome weather. So I was rested and ready for Day 3. We left the hotel (and our luggage, which was picked…
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Postcards from Iceland: Dalvík
More Details: Postcards from Iceland: DalvíkDalvík, in the north of Iceland right at around 12 o’clock, is a small town of about 1,400 inhabitants on the western side of the Eyjafjörður fjord. We drove through this fishing town on the way to our base in Akureyri as we rounded the peninsula where Dalvík sits on route 76 going east after…
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On the Camino de Santiago: Day 2 from Barbadelo to Portomarín
More Details: On the Camino de Santiago: Day 2 from Barbadelo to PortomarínFinally, the first long day of our Camino started on Day 2 in Barbadelo. Day 1, as I wrote about, was really a “baby” hiking day. All good; ’twas for a good reason (like getting to see O Cebreiro). But I (along with my fellow trekkers) were really ready to tackle the ‘mino. I enjoyed…
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Doing the Camino de Santiago | Day 1 from Sarria to Barbadelo
More Details: Doing the Camino de Santiago | Day 1 from Sarria to BarbadeloAs I explained in an earlier post, I had limited time for doing the Camino de Santiago as I was also spending time before the trek doing work with a children’s center in Morocco. So, instead of starting on the French side of the Spain-France border as many do to get to Santiago de Compostela, we…
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Along the Camino: Charming O Cebreiro
More Details: Along the Camino: Charming O CebreiroAs I mentioned in a prior post, I started the Camino de Santiago around kilometer 110 in Sarria due to time constraints. However, the group that organized the trek, Trekking for Kids, knew from a prior trek that O Cebreiro was a town we could not missed. So on our way to start our Camino,…
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Another Pilgrim on the Camino de Santiago
More Details: Another Pilgrim on the Camino de SantiagoThe Camino de Santiago, or the Way of St. James, is an ancient pilgrimage indeed with a timeline of over 1,000 years. Pilgrims from all over Europe would come from far and near to visit the place where St. James (or Santiago) is buried: under the Cathedral of Santiago de Compostela in northwestern Spain (Galicia,…
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Þingvellir: Where History and Nature Meet in Iceland!
More Details: Þingvellir: Where History and Nature Meet in Iceland!One of the key stops along the Golden Circle in Iceland (a nice day trip from Reykjavik) is Þingvellir (or “Thingvellir”, as the first letter is a “th”-ish sound), in the Þingvellir National Park. It is a site of great importance both because of historic and geological reasons. It was here than in the 10th…
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Iceland’s Blue Lagoon – Not Just for Movies
More Details: Iceland’s Blue Lagoon – Not Just for MoviesWhen planning our trip to Iceland, we decided that because the Blue Lagoon was on the way from the airport to Reykjavik that it would make a lot of sense to stop there after landing as a way to relax after a not-long-enough overnight flight (and a long layover in JFK). Getting there So after…
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A Week in Iceland – Our Itinerary
More Details: A Week in Iceland – Our ItineraryA week in Iceland comes to a close. I am sitting at the airport (to which I got way too early even though just about over 2 hours ahead of flight time) trying to figure out what I will be writing about and, more importantly, how I will be describing in. Before I get on…