Travelling
Now that I have returned from Russia, I cannot wait to give you the full report on my visa-free Russia trip! I booked this a few months ago when I figured out I can visit Russia without a visa, if only for a relatively short…
Bethlehem: I looked everywhere in my 2011 Bradt Guide, but couldn’t find it. What’s going on with Bethlehem? No wonder… Bethlehem is in the West Bank, one of the three Palestine Territories in Israel. It took me a little to figure that out – being ignorant,…
Hallo and Happy New Year to you! May 2020 bring you health, happiness and prosperity! How was your start into 2020? And have you thought about your decade of travel? Honestly, I am kind of glad it’s over now. Too much reflection can be a…
We leave home in a downpour, me pulling my flimsy travelling coat around me as I pull my little case to the train station. A train and a flight later, we are greeted by golden evening light in Istanbul and fly into the sunset to…
The Atlanta Hotel is a special case. So, after writing my ode about that one, I felt serving up a huge extra portion about the equally special restaurant in the same post would be a bit too much. Especially since I appear to have eaten…
To be honest with you: I first heard of the existence of Rachel’s Tomb when seeing the Destination Boards of Bethlehem-bound buses: Rachels’ Tomb/Checkpoint 300. It is not without irony that the place where the Hebrew Matriarch Rachel is buried now signifies a checkpoint between…
(visited November 2017, written February 2018 and updated December 2019) First Time Israel and Arrival in Jerusalem Jerusalem – Holy City of three faiths and contested for millennia. It has long been on my list of places I wish to visit in my lifetime. For…
(written November 2017, updated December 2019) I love Japan, and I love beautiful things. So it comes as a surprise that I have never been deeply into the art of Japanese ceramics. Until now! Japanese Ceramics are worth seeking out I was lucky enough to…
The end of the year is near. Time for my 2019 travel review, a year full of work and a moderate amount of travelling within the limits of three jobs. However… we Germans are lucky to get a generous annual leave allowance, so I have…
Shopping in Turkey is a dream – if you know where to look. Four years ago, I spent two days in Istanbul and came home laden with spices and home wares, so with the festive season looming, I was very excited buy some good gifts…
We recently had our “summer holiday” to Turkey and flew on airlines which both get consistently bad reviews on Skytrax. But are they really that bad? Whether Pegasus or Turkish Airlines are a better choice for you depends on many factors. Here is our experience…
Can you buy Marimekko fabric at good prices in Finland? Let’s continue on the great fabric quest, shall we? When you visit Finland, even fleetingly, you think of Marimekko, a design brand of great longevity and perpetual good taste. Marimekko – a Finnish Design Company…
When in St. Petersburg… the State Hermitage Museum is probably on most visitors itineraries unless their time in the city is extremely limited. One of the largest publicly accessible palace complexes in the world, the Winter Palace and its annexes house an amazing collection of…
Every morning when I drive to work, I hear them now, adverts for Black Friday, mixed in with the first Christmassly chimes! My mother decided to spend Christmas in Spain and is heading off, which gets me thinking about seasonal gifts, especially gifts for travellers…
This almost sounds like it’s too good to be true, right? The Baltic States, Belarus and Russia are linen producers and well known for good quality linen. So, it made sense on my recent trip to St. Petersburg and Tallinn to increase the stash – …
