Visiting many cities in river cruise ships has become quite popular in North America, the Mediterranean region, Baltic countries, on east and west South American Coasts, and in the Far East mainly due to marketing efforts of cruise boat companies specializing in this segment of the industry.

Some of these cruise boats are very large, capable of accommodating up to 1000 passengers. Many offer multiple restaurants as, bars and several entertainment venues, and sport facilities.

While thousands enjoy travelling in these boats sharing space with hundreds of others, there are individuals who prefer smaller river cruise boats. Typically these cruise boats are designed to accommodate 90 – 240 passengers (some may accommodate up to 1000), are low draft vessels, and never sail on “rough” seas.

River cruises are more intimate, sail at a low speed, and passengers enjoy changing scenery at every bend of the river. You gain a completely different perspective of the landscape as the boat sails past vineyards, small towns, other boats, and opportunities to visit small towns frequently,

You don’t have to pay extra for land excursions as the boat landings are in town. All you have to do is cross the land plank, then you are on terra firma and downtown to enjoy the environment, maybe an espresso in a sidewalk café, or a glass of local wine if visiting Burgundy, or the Rhine, or the Moselle.

Generally, river cruises last seven days or a fortnight and prices include food, entertainment. Alcoholic beverages and other services must be paid separately.

On shore activities may include museums, art or craft galleries, points of interest and cultural sites.

Several companies organize river cruises in different countries and regions i.e. in France Burgundy, in Russia Volga, or between Moscow and St. Petersburg and on the Volga (the largest European river), in Germany the Rhine from Basel to Amsterdam, in Egypt the Nile (world’s longest), in Peru the Amazon (world’s largest by volumetric discharge and largest draining basin), in Austria on the Danube (starting in Vienna and ending on the shores of the Black Sea), in the U S A on the Mississippi typical paddle boats.

Food quality ranges from good to adequate, pending on price and country, but always enough to satisfy even the hungriest person in the group.

Prices of river cruises range from low to reasonable to luxury.

All depends on the complexity, costs of landings, the standard of life of the country being visited, size of cabins, and the age of the boat.

River cruise boats travel at slower speeds and the scenery passes by in slow motion. You want to enjoy a cruise, choose a river boat.

Never miss a post! subscribe via RSS or subscribe via e-mail. Post writer – Hrayr Berberoglu – E-mail – Read his books?   Professor B offers seminars to companies and interested parties on any category of wine, chocolates, chocolates and wine, olive oils, vinegars and dressings, at a reasonable cost.

For most history-oriented tourists, Armenia is a treasure trove of museums, old churches, temples and monasteries.

Armenia is a small country located east of Turkey on the eastern plains of Mount Ararat, south of Georgia, north of Iran, and west of Azerbaijan.

You can drive from the northern border to Iran in approximately 10 hours on highways built to western standards, but there are many curves that force you to maintain an average speed of 80 km./hours.

Thousands of central Europeans visit Yerevan, the capital, every year to see one of the oldest inhabited cities in the world, wonder at the manuscripts in a specially designed museum, and the paintings of the National Museum overlooking the main square.

Although Yerevan has enough sites to keep a tourist busy for one or two weeks, most want to take a day trip to nearby destination of the Cathedral of Etchmiadzin, the mother church of the Armenian Apostolic Orthodox fait.

Armenian King Drates III was the first to accept Christianity on behalf of the nation in 301 A D.

Ten mother church was built in 303 A D after Saint Gregory the Illuminator saw the Holy Ghost descend in a vision on the site.

Etchmiadzin, the city, was the capital of Armenia from 180 to 340 A.D.

The mother church complex (the church and the seat of the primate of the Apostolic Orthodox Faith) is modest by Vatican standards.

It is small, and people stand during mass, as in all Armenian churches in the country. Armenian churches in other countries (and there are many) have pews.

A Zoroastrian Fire temple occupied the site in the third century B C and was destroyed by an earthquake.

It is approximately 20 kilometres northeast of Yerevan and easily reached in 30 minutes. Hire a local guide in Yerevan for the day and a taxi in good driving condition, but negotiate for an adequate price before you board the vehicle. The tranquility of the whole site is impressive, and the church emanates “divinity”. Most people, if not all, buy several candles, as is customary, to light and pray for their family or for something they desire intensely. Candle sales help maintain the church.

A souvenir shop is also on the site and does a brisk business selling religious artefacts, and paintings of the land.

Once you visit the complex, proceed to the nearby Garni that was inhabited since Neolithic times. The temple is dedicated to Helios, the Roman god of sun, and built by King Drtades I in the fist century A.D. with funding from Emperor Nero in exchange for military support against the Parthian Empire.

Garni was destroyed in 1679 by an earthquake, but restored fully from 1965 – 1975.

The Ionic architecture and setting are memorable.

After Christianity was adopted, Garni by royal decree escaped demolition. Later it served as a summer residence for royalty eager to escape the stifling summer heat of Yerevan.

After Garni, drive 10 kilometres to reach the Geghard monastery and church perched above a canyon of the Azat River.

Hermits retreated in the caves even before Christianity was declared the national religion.

Here hermits dedicated their lives to contemplate, pray, write translate and interpret the Biblefor the clergy.

The Monastery of the Holy Lance was built much later, and the Zakarian family financed the rock-hewn Church the Virgin Mary complete with a natural spring source.

These three historical sites can be comfortably visited if an experienced guide organizes the day.

Lunch should be taken in Etchmiadzin city.

There are several tourist agencies offering day tours to these sites, which may be cancelled if sufficient demand fails to materialize.

Never miss a post! subscribe via RSS or subscribe via e-mail. Post writer – Hrayr Berberoglu – E-mail – Read his books?   Professor B offers seminars to companies and interested parties on any category of wine, chocolates, chocolates and wine, olive oils, vinegars and dressings, at a reasonable cost.

If you travelled a lot and visited most of the popular destinations in the east and west, maybe it is time to visit exotic cities and countries. By that, I don’t mean sun, sand, and fun islands in the Caribbean, although they fit the description of travel fort eh young.

Mongolia, in Central Asia, is a destination that should be on the itinerary of the curious world traveller interested experiencing something ordinary western tourists have never seen. But, you must hurry; the country and people are changing fast.

Ghenghis Khan founded Mongolia in 1206. Hearty Mongolian riders and warriors on their small horses roamed the arid steppes of Central Asia and beyond. Genghis Khan’s successors enlarged the empire from what is today Poland, to the Korean peninsula, from Siberia to the Gulf of Oman and Vietnam in the east covering come 33 million square kilometres.

Mongolian horses are a little larger than ponies, but have very strong hind legs. They can climb high mountains, and run for long periods.

Mongolia’s population converted to Buddhism gradually over two centuries (16 – 17^th centuries), and still today most are devout Buddhists despite 75 years (1924 – 1989) of Soviet occupation. 50 per cent are Buddhists, 40 atheists, 6 believe in Shamanism, Bahai faith, and Christianity, and 4 in Islam).

Ulan Baatar, the capital of Mongolia, a sparsely populated country of close to three million people, is home to one million.

The city has a few Buddhist monasteries that escaped demolitions at the hands of Soviet commissars, the most famous of which is Choijin Lama Monastery completed in 1908. It was turned into a museum in 1942.

The other monastery is Gandan Monose built in the 19^th century, and famous for its 26.5 metre high golden statue of Migjid Jauransig.

The ruler of Mongolia had four palaces in Ulan Baatar, of which only the Winter Palace(Old Ikh Khuree) remains, but was converted to a museum.

There are several other museums, of which the following are recommended – national Museum of Mongolian History, and the Zanabazaar Museum of Fine Arts.
the Soviet-style opera house is worth a visit.

The Sukhbaatar Square boasts the Zaisan Memorial commemorating the soldiers who perished in World War II

The Gorkhi Terelj Natural Park, a nature preserve with many tourist facilities, 70 Km. from Ulan Baatar, is popular amongst tourists.

Mongols still today are fond of horses, and many children growing up in the country can ride before they can walk.

Wrestling and archery are two sports celebrated annually at different fairs.

Mongolia looks and feels like an unfenced paddock, approximately three times as large as France, it is inhabited by a little less than three million people.

Many in the country live nomadic lives in their gers (circular, modular white felt tents), but enjoy modern amenities like cellular phones, TV sets powered by solar panels, and cocasioanlly own Soviet built motorcycles with sidecars, or Landover type vehicles.

The interior of the ger is cozy, decked out with carpets, and an ornate cast-iron stove and family pictures.

Air China and MIAT (the Mongolian Air Line) fly from Beijing twice weekly to Ulan Baatar, but other international airline including Aeroflot, Lufthansa and others fly from Tokyo, Seoul, Berlin, Moscow, and Irkutsk direct.

For North Americans, flying involves one or two stopovers, but can be embellished by overnight- or short stops in Moscow, or Berlin, or Tokyo, or Beijing.

Those who decide to travel to Mongolia and possibly a few other capitals will not regret and soon forget the adventure.

Never miss a post! subscribe via RSS or subscribe via e-mail. Post writer – Hrayr Berberoglu – E-mail – Read his books?   Professor B offers seminars to companies and interested parties on any category of wine, chocolates, chocolates and wine, olive oils, vinegars and dressings, at a reasonable cost.

A fishing village once called Edo, Tokyo has grown to be one of the world’s biggest cities. Until Ota Dakon built the Edo Castle in 1457, Edo remained a fishing village. Emperor Meiji moved the capital of Japan from Kyoto to Tokyo in 1869 and the importance of importance and expansion began.

Today, Tokyo has eight million inhabitants and GTA 35 – 39 million pending the way the counting is done, and the method employed. It is also one of the three most important financial centres of the world after New York and London. The stock exchange is the second largest in the world after New York.

Tokyo has two airports – Haneda for internal flights and Nairta for international.

Arriving for the first time in Tokyo or Japan is an experience the western tourist cannot forget easily. Everything is crowded, whit people rushing everywhere, signs in Japanese and English.

Japan is approximately the size of California with a population of 120 million. Therefore you can imagine the density per square kilometre and you feel it on the streets of Tokyo and all other major cities of the country.

Japan is a homogeneous society. The overwhelming majority of Japanese look alike think alike, eat alike, and by and large, act alike. So after a while you can anticipate what to expect when talking with or asking a Japanese about directions or anything else.

English may be considered the second language but don.’ Expect to find many people who speak it although thousands or even millions learn English. For the Japanese it is easier to read English than to speak.

This makes navigating in Tokyo difficult, yet once you get your druthers you can find your way with a little help of well designed city maps, and maybe a friendly soul.

Tokyo has an extensive subway system supported by an equally extensive bus network. Subways during peak hours are so busy and crowded that management employs people to pull passengers out of trains, and equally to push others into cars.

Don’t use the subway system during rush hours!

The climate is mild with hot and humid summers and mild winters.

You can stay in western style hotels or in a traditional Japanese ryokan. Accommodation in Tokyo is expensive, and should be booked well in advance.

Ryokans are fun, and are recommended for western tourists. A stay in a ryokan is an

experience!

The city has many museums all of which are well organized, highly interesting, and contain artefacts almost in mint condition.

The following are highly recommended – Tokyo natural Museum, National Museum of Western Art, national Museum of Science, national museum of Modern Art.

A walk in the famous Ginza is an absolute must to experience the hustle and bustle of shops, and Tokyo’s famous department stores – Wako, and Mitsukoshi are only two that come to mind. All have their “greeters” at the door who bow to every customer entering the store. Visit a few of the departments and don’t miss to take a look at the food department to at least admire world famous Kobe beef, and fruits that look perfect and are lovingly packaged, but frighteningly expensive.

Ginza at night is completely different experience. On side streets in basements of small

buildings, there are all kinds of night clubs where you can buy a bottle of whisky (Scotch or Japanese) and if you and your guests with a lot of help from female “guests” employed by the management cannot finish the bottle, it will put in a cage, then the cage will be locked and you be given the key. Anytime you feel like it, you can drop by and it will be waiting for you. The price is high, but all nightclubs are busy, even during recessions.

As everyone knows, Japanese eat a lot of fish and crustaceans, bivalves, and every other imaginable sea creature including sea urchins, sea cucumbers, and logically the world’s largest fish market is Tsukiji just outside of Tokyo. There is public transportation, but you must visit early and be very careful as water and ice are everywhere in the market.

Literally, thousands of tons of fish are sold daily from everywhere in the world.

Once in Tokyo, you must experience sushi and sashimi but you can also splurge in Chiku yotei on a table d’hote menu Y 50,000.00 at lunch (approximately $ 500.00 at 100 Yen to the US $), but a regular client must recommend you for a reservation, or you can try Ginza Shiseido Parlour where abalone and lobster curry will set you back $ 100.00 or the special menu $ 40.00

In Tokyo, space in any street restaurant at lunch is precious and serves expect you to eat, pay and leave quickly. Lingering after your meal is frowned upon, and you will be told in no uncertain terms to pay and leave since the next guest in waiting eagerly to take your seat.

The Imperial Palace north of Hibiya Park can be reached from Ginza easily, but you have to make a reservatin, better yet, join a sight seeing tour.

When in Japan, you can shop for electronic gadgets, and souvenirs (paintings, ceramics, lacquered decorations, glassware, china and fine silk prints).

A visit to Tokyo is an experience from many perspectives – living tightly, eating differently, and acting collectively.

These days, JAL (Japanese Air Lines) is offering bargains from North America. The flight is long but can be fun; arriving in Tokyo will change you.

You can also take a break in Hawaii.

Similarly flying form Europe you can break the long flight with a visit to Hong Kong and continue from there, or Moscow.

Never miss a post! subscribe via RSS or subscribe via e-mail. Post writer – Hrayr Berberoglu – E-mail – Read his books?   Professor B offers seminars to companies and interested parties on any category of wine, chocolates, chocolates and wine, olive oils, vinegars and dressings, at a reasonable cost.

Spain has been producing, consuming and exporting wine for thousands of years. It has the most land devotes to grape growing, but is the fourth largest producer of wine in the world. This means that yield per hectare is low, and this translates to more flavourful wines.

The tour starts with Penedes close the second largest city, and the capital of Catalonia, Barcelona.

Penedes produces mainly dry table wines, and 99 per cent of all sparkling wines of the country. San Sadurni di Noya, a village some 35 km. from Barcelona is the main locale for sparkling wine production with Freixenet and Codorniu (the largest of all Spanish producers) being the main and largest of the industry.

The red wines are medium- to heavy weight, balanced and flavourful, ranging form mid-priced to very expensive.

Some fine, fragrant white and rose wines are also produced by reputable and old wineries.

Montsant and Priorat to the west of Penedes have become prominent in the last two decades for their dark, powerful, fruity, smooth, and balanced wines mainly derived using syrah, garnacha, monastrell (a.k.a mourvedre), merlot, cabernet sauvignon.

Continuing to the north we arrive in Calatayud a less known but excellent wine region for its red wines, as is the case with Navarra further north and close to the Pyrenees.

Navarra`s rose wines from garnacha deserve the attention of all who enjoy light red, fragrant wines in the summer.

West of Navarra is the world-famous region of Rioja. It produces outstanding red wines, superb long-lived whites, and fine roses. Rioja`s vine-cuttings wood fired owns yield outstanding roast leg of lamb, and in season, restaurants feature white succulent asparagus sautéed in butter and olive oil.

Further west we arrive in Ribera del Duero, well known it dry red wines derived mostly using tempranillo, one of Spain’s best, if not the best red wine grapes.

Ribera del Duero wines are long-lived and should be tried by all who look for succulent, `juicy red wines with their food.

Rueda, south and west of Ribera del Duero, is better known for its white wines made with verdejo grapes, but Toro further west, for its impossibly elegant and flavourful red wines derived from tempranillo, here called tinto del pais.

Spain excels in frd wines, but in Rias Baixas fragrant white wines reign supreme. They please all palates looking for low-alcohol, fragrant, balanced, succulent white wines.

Some 400 kms south of Rias Baixas, we arrive in Jerez de la Frontera, made famous by English wine merchants centuries ago under the name sherry.

This is a very versatile wine category, available from very dry to deliriously sweet and everything in between. It is fortifies to 19 – 21 per cent alcohol by volume and goes well with dried ham, seafood, potato, tuna salads, and all kinds of tapas.

Jumilla, now produces dark red, super fruity dry wines that can rival any from the New World countries at very attractive prices.

Here are a few wines you may want to try:

White wines:

Albarino, 2009, Leira, Rias Baixas

Verdejo, 2008, Via Vilano, Rueda

Crianza de Toro, Finca Sobreno

Cune Monopole, 2008, Cune, Rioja

Red wines:

Sabor Real, 2006, Toro

Vivir, 2007, Vinos de Fabula, Ribera del Duero

Vina Zaco Tempranillo, 2006, Bodegas Bilbainas, Rioja

Artazuri Garnacha, 2008, Vinedos Artazu, Navarra

Old Vines Garnacha de Fuego, 2008, Bodegas Ateca, Calatayud

Vino Tinto, 2006, Latria, Montsant

Monastrell, 2008, Julia e Hijos, Jumilla

Sangre de Toro, 2008, Torres, Penedes

Marques de Riscal Reserva, 2006, Rioja

Campo Viejo, Rioja

Marques de Caceres Crianza, 2008, Rioja

Fortified Wines:

Dry Sack, William and Humbert, Jerez de la Frontera

Never miss a post! subscribe via RSS or subscribe via e-mail. Post writer – Hrayr Berberoglu – E-mail – Read his books?   Professor B offers seminars to companies and interested parties on any category of wine, chocolates, chocolates and wine, olive oils, vinegars and dressings, at a reasonable cost.

The English merchants and the government of the Untied Kingdom made this memorable city famous and prosperous. After the First Opium War  (1839 – 1842), it became a colony of Britain until 1997, when an accord between the people’s republic of China and the United Kingdom declared it a Special Administered region of People’s Republic of China.

As a British colony, there were no taxes, so commerce thrived, and industry expanded; of course, British merchants benefited immensely from all these policies. Even today there are many English trading offices that import primarily British, but also from many other countries. Exports and harbour activity also contribute to finances.

Originally, Hong Kong was a fishing village inhabited by the Hakka people thousands of years ago, and who still inhabit the New Territories a few kilometres out of downtown. The first extensive records of this, now thriving seven million inhabitant city, go back only to 1842, although the Portuguese explorer Jorge Alvares was the first European to set foot on Hong Kong.

The British declared it a “free port” serving their companies as an entrepot for other countries in the region.

Hong Kong is often described as a city where east meets west. You can stay in the luxurious peninsula Hotel to be chauffeured around in a Rolls Royce, or stay in a country-style in and use public transportation.

Kowloon is connected to the mainland Central District by ferry. Every en minutes or so, one departs and practically all tourists ride it at least once to enjoy the harbour vistas in the least expensive way possible.

Hong Kong is a crowded place with 7650 skyscrapers to accommodate the population in the least possible space.

For the tourist, the downtown is a fascinating place with street hustlers peddling everything imaginable, including tailored suits in two days using the best English fabric. Once you get a suit made, you can order another a year later, and the company will mail it to you. Some businesspeople travel “on business” annually to get yet another inexpensive made to measure suit.

Po Lin Monastery, the Ocean Park, Hong Kong Disneyland, and Temple Streets are the sites most frequently visited by tourists, but they are not the only ones. You can hop on the tram (streetcar) for 25 cents for an interesting tour. The century-old transportation system is efficient and transports thousands daily. You can hop off to see the Suzy Wong era nightlife of Wan Chai, or look at traditional buildings in front of which old people animatedly discuss their own problems or world politics.

There is also a modern sub-way system.

Hong Kong people love to dine out. There are more than 11,000 restaurants (one for every 636 citizen). You can eat high-end Chinese delicacies, or a bowl of soup, Thai, Middle Eastern, North American steaks, French, Italian, and even Russian specialties.

Many tourists take the hydrofoil boat to Macau to visit the huge hotels wits casinos and admire Portuguese architecture. Portugal administered Macau until recently

Hong Kong residents love to party year round. The biggest events happen at Chinese New Year, but every month or so, there is some kind of festival.

The city thrives on tourism, trade, the textile industry, toy manufacturing and everything of value that can be imitated and converted to money.

Hong Kong Tourism Board offers many free activities such as tea appreciation seminars, tea ceremonies, tai chi classes, architecture tours, and calligraphy lessons.

Every major airline flies to Hong Kong but Cathay Pacific operates out of the modern airport, itself an architectural masterpiece of technology.

Never miss a post! subscribe via RSS or subscribe via e-mail. Post writer – Hrayr Berberoglu – E-mail – Read his books?   Professor B offers seminars to companies and interested parties on any category of wine, chocolates, chocolates and wine, olive oils, vinegars and dressings, at a reasonable cost.

Aquincum, founded by Romans, is the ancestor of Budapest. The Roman Empire occupied Pannonia for centuries, and as was customary, forced its soldiers to plant vineyards. Each Roman soldier was allotted one litre of wine per day and had to mix it with water to render harmful bacteria harmless.

The Magyars arrived in what is today Hungary in the ninth century, and had to depend on the land ever since, then fought against the Ottoman army in the 16^th century.

After World War II, the Russian army was there for  a considerably long time until 1989 when Hungarian managed to take back their land.

Budapest, the capital and largest city of Hungary has a population approaching two million, and is one of the most beautiful cities in Europe, if not the world. Located on both banks of the mighty Danube River, Budapest consists of two parts – Buda on the south bank and Pest on the north bank that offers a beautiful view to Buda.

Buda’s Castle Quarter is an absolute must-see district with its castle, cafes and restaurants. Hungarians are very fond of pastries and tortes. In fact, an inventive Hungarian pastry chef first made the Dobos torte. Food means a lot to Hungarians ad they invented many gastronomic dishes that are much liked all over the world i.e. gulyas, porkolt, paprikas with pork, just to name a few.

Budapest is the second city in the world to build a subway system in 1894.

The city is easy for walking on the Pest side. You can visit the parliament built in neo-gothic style, the State Opera House, the Museum of Applied Arts and the Hungarian national Museum.

S. Stephens Basilica and Matthias Church are worth visiting for their architectural and to admire the frescoes inside. Budapest is also famous for its curative waters. Several hotels offer curative baths recommended by doctors for a number of ailments

A visit to the Margaret Island in the middle of the Danube River is highly recommended.

While in Budapest, visiting a restaurant that offers entertainment is a must, where gypsies (there are 14,000 in Budapest) play the violin at any table where there presence is requested.

Matyas pince is a typical Hungarian restaurant with lively gypsy music at night.

Budapest also is home to 18,000 Germans, thousands of Poles, Slovaks, Greeks and Romanians.

Hungarian wines (red, white, sparkling and sweet) are well known all over the world, and are now becoming better each year since being freed from Soviet control and production mandates.

Andrassy ut (street) is full of theatres and museums.

Hungarian embroidery, salami, barrack palinka (apricot brandy), Tokay (four or five puttonyos quality) are only some of the items I recommend.

Lufthansa flies from Toronto via Frankfurt am Main or Munich to Budapest, as does British Airways via London, and Air France via Paris.

Accommodations: Many major North American hotel chains operate properties in Budapest, but you can also book into more eclectic small hotels or even budget hotels.

For more information log on to budapestinfo.hu

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This Mediterranean city in Catalunya was founded by Carthaginian Hamilcar Barca, the father of Hannibal in the third century B.C.

By 15 B.C. Romans decided to establish a military camp on Mount Taber and introduced the grid city concept.

Barcelona is the capital of Catalunya, the second largest city of Spain after Madrid with a population of 1.6 million plus. It is an

important finance, commerce, media, entertainment, arts and international trade centre.

The port represents one of the largest in Spain with considerable cargo traffic.

This green city with mild and humid winters and hot and dry summers has many parks including Montjuic (203 hectares), Park Guell

(designed by A. Gaudi), and many others.

Antoni Gaudi and Lluis Demenech i Montaner are two of Barcelona’s famous architects who designed many of the churches and other

sites, many of which are declared world heritage sites by the United nations.

La Sagrada Cathedral is a Gaudi design, the construction of which started in 1882 and city architects are hoping to finish construction

in 2026. One may be inclined to claim La Sagrada to be difficult and ornate project, but it looks simple with clean lines.

The Rambla, a wide avenue with innumerable restaurants and shops is worth walking through, but tourists must be very careful with their

belongings (cameras, other electronic gadgets and purses) as there are many who prey on unsuspecting individuals.

While in Barcelona, you must try at least a few tapa bars, and specialties of Catalunya, especially seafood. Tapas are small ‘mouthful

delicacies” that groups can share. Tapa-hopping among Barcelona’s young people is a popular pastime accompanied by a glass or

two of dry sherry, or sparkling wine.

Just outside of Barcelona, the town of San Sadurni di Noya is Spain’s sparkling wine production centre with world famous wineries of

Codorniu and Freixenet. There are many others. You can visit the two mentioned in one day.

Barcelona has an excellent subway and bus system that tourists can use with ease.

When it comes to museums, the following are well worth visiting – National museum of Catalan Art, Barcelona Museum of Art, Museum of

History of Catalunya, Archeology Museum of Catalunya, and the Maritime Museum.

For those who like to explore local food, La Bouqueria, the food markets, is an absolute must where you can find all the fruits grown in Spain

and many fromt eh tropics i.e pineapples, breadfruit, guavas, mangoes, and lychees, just to name a fe.

Spanish growers are now starting to establish mango plantastions. The goal is to grow and produce enough to satisfy internal demand, and

export to northern European countries.

The Palau Nacional, the seat of the regional government, is ronate and impressive, as is the Cathedral of Barcelona.

If you enjoy swimming, all you have to do is go to oen of the several beaches, renta chaise longue, and relax. Swimming in the sea is a completely

different experience to swimming in a pool

Barcelona’s harbour also offers an opportunity to visit a fll size replica of one of Columbus’s ships (the Santa Maria) of his first voyage.

Many airlines fly to Barcelona from London, Paris, Frankfurt am Main, and Zurich. North American have a varied choice, but must transfer in one

of the major European hubs.

Barcelona offers a wide range of hotels and other types of accommodation at, different levels of luxury. Reservations are highly recommended.

Once in Barcelona, you can rent a car and drice along the cast all the way to jerez de la Fronetera int eh west, or go east to visit vineyards in

Languedoc or Marseille.

When it comes to shopping, head to the market in front of the Placa Nova in Barr; Gothic district and look at antiques, manila shawls, posters, sturdy

jewellery and whatever else you can imagine. In order to get the best deal, you must haggle!

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Link to Hammarkullekarnevalens homepage.

The carnival is since 1974, a yearly tradition in Hammarkullen. The carnival was started by youth and adults through “Frisco project” on Hammarkullens leisure farm, where the first spring carnival was held. In the late 70s they made a stop for 2 years. Since 1979 have the Latin American organization participated with special dances and costumes. For every year the arrangement has grown and developed to What it has been today; a wide cultural folk festival. It is easy to understand that Hammarkull child is pride over ‘hers’ carnival and its neighborhood.

This Year Carnival will be held May 28 to 30 May.

You can see pictures from earlier years here in the blog. Link to Hammarkullekarnevalen.

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Traveling and tourism traffic are becoming more and more expensive, not to mention complex.

In the recent past, if you wanted to travel, all you had to do was apply for a passport, book a flight, or a passage on a transatlantic boat.

Now there are many options, but also many added inconveniences related to time, also additional expenses mainly due to high-jacking and ever since 9/11 incident in the U S A. High-jacking incidences lead to increased security measures at airports and on cruise ships the expenses of which are borne by each traveller. Airport security checks are time-consuming, inconvenient, bothersome, and expensive.

Cruise boat companies subject all luggages to an x-ray examination and passengers are thoroughly screened. All costs are included in the fare.

Visa requirement in some countries have been in effect for many years to ensure that a tourist has a clean record, or sometimes even free of contagious diseases.

These are obviously valid reasons, but in this day and age with all the information available about terrorists, narcotraffickers and assorted undesirable individuals, border guards and/or customs officers can check anyone’s background with a few keystrokes on a computer on the Internet.

In addition, in many technologically advanced   countries passports contain embedded magnetic coded strips that can easily be scanned.

Visas have now become a high source of revenue for many countries i.e China, Russia, and many other countries.

Russia requires ‘in theory” that you provide an invitation by a company in order to visit the country and US $ 50.00 or more per visa. The cost depends who is getting the visa for you, and your citizenship. For a multiple entry visa, you must pay more, much more, and if you want the visa quickly you have to pay even more, although whatever the consulate checks requires the same amount of time.

Visa requirements are sometimes reciprocal, i.e if the citizens of one country are required to have a visa, the other imposes a visa requirement too. Take the case of the Czech republic. Last year for a while many Roma (gypsies) arrived in Canada asking for asylum claiming that they are being discriminated against. In reality Roma were economic migrants, and often became a burden to the treasury. The Canadian government quickly imposed a visa requirement for all Czech citizens, and the Czech Republic in return did the same for Canadian citizens, although no Canadian has ever asked for asylum in that central European republic.

Visa requirements deter tourism traffic. Who wants to apply for a visa, electronically or otherwise, with a picture, and then send in the passport and wait? In some instances passports get lost and the traveller must apply to authorities for a new one at great expense and inconvenience as it happened to me a few years back.

Last year many Mexicans applied for asylum in Canada. They were economic opportunists trying to jump the cue. The government quickly imposed a visa requirement, but this caused a lot of rich Mexicans to cancel their planned vacations in Canada. This cost the Canadian economy millions of dollars of loss of income.

Now some governments including the U S A have invented a new way of extracting funds from visitors by imposing a US $ 10.00 “entry fee”. Canadians travelling to the U S A are exempt from this possibly because millions travel to border cities and sop countless discount merchandise malls.

In other countries entry fees are much higher (In Chile US $ 50.00 for Canadians, and US $ 100.00 for Americans, in Armenia US $ 30.00 regardless of citizenship except for the citizens of formerly republics of the U S S R)

On the other hand EU member countries don’t even require a passport for travel within.

Visa requirements hinder tourism traffic. Entry fees are annoying and often not made public, but less of a hassle and bearable. Theycan represent difficulties for tourists who may not have US $ handy, and currencies available that are inconvertible, i.e the Armenian dram, or others.

The worst of all tourism rip-offs is exercised by the government of Bhutan that requires not only a visa, but also a daily staying fee in excess of US $ 150.00 per person claiming that this mitigates tourism related pollution in the “pure and unpolluted” country.

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Few North Americans have heard of Goa, and fewer still vacation there.
Europeans and Australians love Goa and frequent the place often. It is closer to Australia and European countries than North America. You can fly from London to Mumbai (Bombay) and hop on a domestic flight or take a bus to get there.

This province was administered by Portuguese from 1510 until 1961 when the Idnaion army simply attacked, and annexed it to India. Goa’s capital is Panaji but the biggest city is Vasco de Gama.

Goa is famous for its sandy beaches, architecture, gentle climate, spice plantations and cuisine.

Most Europeans visit Goa for its beaches to escape the harsh winters of northern Europe and it is much less expensive than a vacation in southern Spain, Canary Islands, or Madeira in

the Atlantic ocean.

Australians like the place because of its proximity, low prices and its different culture.

Goa, located approximately 300 kms. south of Mumbai, enjoys a tropical climate and grows many spices now familiar in the west. Spice was the reason for Portuguese taking over the land to benefits from the spice trade.

Tourists visit spice plantations to see how peppercorns grow and are harvested. The city of Panda offers several opportunities to learn about spices.

Savoie spice plantation is one of the many (savoiplantation.com) .

There are also churches, villages, and museums, as places of interest, or tourists can simply relax on the tranquil beaches.

Goan cuisine differs from the typical Indian cooking in that it uses more cumin, and rechard masala than curry. Rechard masala is composed of chillies, paprika, cinnamon, cardamom, and cloves.

Vindaloo, a legacy of Portuguese, is a pork based Goan specialty you must try while there.

And one more thing, never confuse a Goan with an East Indian. They never refer to themselves as East Indian, but always as Goans.



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As the population of western industrialized countries continues to age and becomes more affluent the travelling urge becomes more tempting.

Older people prefer group travel to solo trips. It is more convenient to travel in an organized group. You know your itinerary, you don’t have to worry about accommodation, meals or city tours, and, if you feel sick, the tour director will make sure to medical help.

Of course, group travel has also shortcomings in the form of very little choice in your accommodation, or menu or sites visited.

Another problem may be the seat in the bus, and frequent delays due to some individuals who habitually arrive late for departures, or simply, individuals with whom you have little in common.

But you can eliminate at least some of the inconveniences of group travel by researching.

First, decide which country you want to visit (several countries in 14 days is not a good idea), and then decide the mode of transportation (terrain, bus, plane).

Once this is done, you can either contact a travel agent or find tour companies operating in

the country of your choice. It is a good idea to ask friends, relatives, and business associates about commendations, and if you have decided to book with a company about the  reputation of the company. You don’t want to book with a fly-by-night operator, who may be bankrupt or disappear with your deposit.

Internet can be a great resource for researching, but make sure you know enough about the company to trust payment in full.

Once you have paid, ask for an official receipt that can be invaluable in disputes later on. Some companies are known to promise too much and deliver very little.

Make sure you know about passport and visa requirements.

It is a good idea to obtain cancellation and medical insurance, particularly if there is even a slight chance of you not being able to travel. Ask for time limits about trip cancellation, and also whether your dietary requirements will be met; these can be physical, or based on religion.

In some advanced, western industrialized countries with a well-developed group tour industry, governments insist that all organizers belong to an association that will follow up on complaints. In Ontario TICO (Travel Industry Council of Ontario) looks after complains.

In emergencies (revolution, war, earth quake, flood) contact the nearest embassy or consulate of your country. In some cases there may not be an agency, but another friendly country’s consulate or embassy, by agreement, takes care of citizens of your home country.

Before you lodge a complaint, have all documentation ready i.e what the company promised, what was delivered, quality of transportation, timeliness, quality of food and accommodation, guides, and how they behaved.

Group travel can be enjoyable, but only if you select a company that specializes in subjects of interest to you. It can be archaeology, scuba diving, ecotourism, hiking, gastronomy, wine, beer, museums, art history, to name just a few.

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There is no need for words in this post, just enjoy!

The pictures can be view in full size in My Photo Blog.

Never miss a post! subscribe via RSS or subscribe via e-mail. Post writer – Morten – E-mail Visit our main site: Winesworld the Amateurs Wine Guide

This small city of 120 000 inhabitants (Greater Reykjavik 200 000) is the world’s most northernmost capital located 64 north latitude.

Despite its northerly location, the climate is relatively mild with January low temperatures of – 3 C, but summers are cool with an average of 13 C in July and August.

Reykjavik is the economic centre and seat of the government.
Founded by Ingolfur Arnarson in 870 as a settlement, it was incorporated as a city in 178, after which it grew quickly and constantly.

During the Ice Age (up to 10 000 years ago) Reykjavik was covered with a glacier.

For a long time Iceland was a dependency of Denmark, but in 1918 gained independence.

Reykjavik lends itself beautifully for walking. The city consists mainly of low-lying houses and buildings, except for a few modern high rises that were erected relatively recently.

The parliament (Althingi), the National Heritage Museum, CIA (Centre for Icelandic Art), the Blue Lagoon (geothermal lagoon) are some of the sights.

Kriglan (the second largest mall in the country) and Langavegur (the main shopping street) are musts for those who like to shop. Prices are not negotiable as in markets in Spain or northern African countries.

Iceland is full of geysers (thermal springs) and Reykjavik’s homes and buildings are heated by thermal heat. There is eve a covered tropical garden where visitors can admire banana- and coffee trees. The building is heated with thermal energy, as is the Blue Lagoon where you can swim in the dead of winter.

Most Icelanders speak English and communicating should represent no problems for unilingual English or North American tourists.

Food is expensive, except for fish, because vegetables ad fruits must be imported from far away. Local lamb, is delicious happens to be inexpensive as there are several times more lamb than humans in Iceland. The cuisine is simple, down to earth, and nourishing.

While in Reykjavik, you can visit nearby Keflavik that grew largely because of the American air base located there.

Iceland is a hiker’s paradise. The land is relatively flat and small allowing unimpeded progress.

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We have been to Skagen in Denmark this Easter in 2010 and here are some pictures from the little town.

Wine, coffee and chocolate; do we need more?

Yes of course, we need some food.

The teddy bear museum.

The church.

And some more things to shop.

This is the butcher with wine and all kind of meat.

Have you been to Skagen?

Never miss a post! subscribe via RSS or subscribe via e-mail. Post writer – Morten – E-mail Visit our main site: Winesworld the Amateurs Wine Guide

Archaeologists discovered that there was human activity on the Honshu Island 10,000 years ago, but there was nothing to prove of Kyoto’s existence before the 6th century A.D.

Emperor Kammu is said to have selected the site, and Heian Kyo was designated as the capital of Japan in 794.

The city was renamed Kyoto in the 11th century.

It was historically the biggest city of the country, but now is surpassed by Tokyo and Osaka.

The capital was transferred to Tokyo in 1869.

Kyoto’s location on a plain makes it easy to explore, and walking effortless, but a city guide should be hired if you want to see as much as possible in a few days. In most Japanese cities, street signs are unilingual except major avenues. Some museums display bilingual (Japanese and English) signs.

The city has approximately 1300 Buddhist temples and close to 400 Shinto shrines. In Japan both Buddhism an Shintoism are practised by the population.
One of the most famous shrines is Higashiyama, built in 1633 for lovelorn individuals, and is visited by thousands daily.

Kyoto, being the capital of Japan for well over eleven centuries, has many imperial palaces, lovely gardens, villas and teahouses.

One could remain in this culturally rich city for weeks to visit all the sights and experience a unique culture.

The Jishu Shrine behind the Pure Water Temple (Kiyomizu) was built in the eight century and rebuilt in 1633.

From here you can have a magnificent view of the city, especially in the fall when Japanese maples turn red, and in the spring, during the cherry blossom.

After the visit, walk the narrow, cobbled streets branching off Sannenzaka Street where you will see old Japanese houses. There are stores where you can purchase traditional tourist souvenirs, (lacquer ware, decorative paper, kimonos, and porcelain). Tourism is one of the important industries of Kyoto, along with electronics manufacturing, IT development, weaving fabric for kimono manufacturing, and sake brewing.

Sannenzaka Street leads into Gion, the city’s well-preserved geisha district, which was developed in the Middle Ages. Here “tea houses” and machiya (town houses) provide entertainment by geishas.

In Kyoto, geishas are called geikos, and “students” maikos. In Japan, geishas go to school for a few years to learn kyomai (Kyoto style dance), flower arrangement, the intricacies of the famous and elaborate Japanese tea ceremony, to play the Japanese harp, and puppet play.

In order to become a professional geisha one must master all these skills and pass a thorough examination.

At Gion Centre tourists can watch demonstrations of all in English and attempt to pick up a few pointers to practice later.

Geikos in apprenticeship spend substantially longer to learn the intricate details of all the skills, plus how make up their hair.

In Kyoto a three-storey building devoted to artists creating porcelain and other traditional objects practice their art and sell.

Kyoto has many museums and at least a few should be visited to experience Japanese thoroughness and planning. In this city, the cuisine differs from that in Tokyo or Osaka. Specialties are famous for their delicacy and taste. In fact, a very unique way of attracting restaurant goers evolved here. Restaurants display their specialties in wax, or in pictures, in display windows. You can decide, based on these presentations, which one to patronize. All plates in the restaurant are served identical to those on display.

This practice is now spread to all Japanese cities and Hong Kong. In Kyoto tourists have a choice between traditional Japanese and western-style accommodation.
Ryokans (traditional Japanese hotels) are small family-operated and composed of rooms containing a dining area, WC, and a sitting corner. There is no western-style bed but a futon is spread at about 6 pm or later, pending on need, in the sitting corner.

There are cleverly designed partitions for privacy, and most of the doors are sliding ones to save space.

Ryokans serve dinner in the room upon advanced reservation and breakfast in the breakfast room off the reception area. Japanese breakfasts consist of green tea, cold omelette, steamed rice, miso soup, pickled ginger, and soy sauce.

In ryokans, shoes must be removed upon check in, and worn again when going out.
Ryokans are expensive, but certainly worth the experience.

You can take the Shinkanzen (the bullet train) from Tokyo and arrive in Kyoto in a few hours. The ride is an experience you won’t soon forget.

For more information of flights log on to
Ar.jal.com and for western style hotel accommodation hyatt.com or any other international hotel chain.

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Travelling in Tunisia presents an opportunity to experience a rich, diverse history, culture and people.

Crossing the country from east to west you can experience olive groves, the Red Mountains of Temerza, the golden dunes of the Sahara and the beautiful coast of the Mediterranean Sea.

Tunis, the capital of Tunisia with a population of 1.2 million, lies on the coast, and enjoys a typical Mediterranean climate with hot summers and mild winters.

The city stretches for kilometres along the coast, and in the middle lies the old city (medina) with its obligatory souk (partially covered bazaar) offering leather goods, plastic gadgets of all sorts, tin products, filigree jewellery, carpets, food and tourist souvenirs.

Tunis is the industrial and commercial heart of the country, although industry’s role is decreasing. Presently, textile, carpet weaving, olive oil and food processing, and financial industries dominate, with tourism playing a supporting role.

The French have been influencing Tunisia and Tunis culturally for some time; churches and commercial buildings show French influence in design and appearance.
In the medina the Great-, Aghlabid Ez Zitouna (built in the eight century) Mosques, Dar al Bey Palace, and the Bardo Museum are well worth visiting. These visits could take two to three days pending on interest level. The souk on the other hand requires a full day, especially for those who like to shop for exotic jewellery and carpets.

Tunis has a few synagogues, and there are several large parks on the outskirts. The zoo grounds located in one of the parks also contains the Museum of Modern Art.
The most interesting sight to visit is Carthage, a short drive from Tunis.

A Phoenician princess founded Carthage in the second millennium B C. Phoenicians at the time were the dominant trading power around the Mediterranean Sea. Later, Berber tribes and others occupied the city.

The Roman Empire tried several tied several times to capture this commercially important harbour, and the Roman senator Marcus Portius Cato is known to have concluded each of his frequent speeches at the senate with the following sentence: “And by the way Carthage must be destroyed”.

Finally in 146 B C Roman soldier and navy sailors occupied and destroyed the city. During the Roman occupation of Tunisia many amphitheatres were build some of which are still being used as open air theatres today.

Islam arrived in the seventh century through Ghassanid general Hassan ibn Numan, his army and followers.

From the 12th to 16th centuries Carthage was controlled by Almadiad and Hafis Berber dynasties during which time the city became the richest and greatest in the Arab world with a population of 100 000. In comparison London had a population of 35 000 in 1577.

Carthage enthrals history buffs. You can easily spend at least a full day visiting the different and partially restored ruins, and if you are interested in history, several days.

Tunis offers accommodation at several levels from Bed and Breakfast, to luxury hotels, and everything in between.

Many western hotel chains either managed locally owned hotels, or have their own establishments.

The best months to visit Tunis are September to May.

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