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doors to other worlds
Category Archives: road
built upon the rock
Equipped with my €30 visa from the religious authorities, I took the fast boat from Ouranoupolis to Dafni, the port of Mount Athos (though that makes it sound grander than it is – there are about six buildings). Since Athos, the … Continue reading
Posted in anybody up there?, road
Tagged Athos, Byzantium, church, Greece, Greek Orthodox, Mount Athos, religion
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hard times in Greece, and how to survive them
The Guardian had a story about a guy in Patras who has been so hard hit by Greece’s current troubles that he could no longer support his ten children and had turned four of them in for care. Sad, yes, … Continue reading
Posted in anybody up there?, road
Tagged Byzantium, church, financial crisis, Greece, Greek Orthodox, inequality, Macedonia, religion, Roman Empire, Salonica, Thessaloniki
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Meteora
My first stop out of Athens was Meteora. This is a strange piece of geology: vast rock pinnacles rising out of the plain and flanking the local mountains. That would be enough to attract 21st century sightseers, but what augments … Continue reading
Posted in anybody up there?, road
Tagged Byzantium, church, Greece, Greek Orthodox, Meteora, religion
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Athens
Arriving in Europe, the same as always: cool grey light. This time, there’s a chill, too: coat and jumper are barely sufficient to be comfortable at night, and there’s a sprinkling of snow on the higher hilltops around Athens. The … Continue reading
the end of the road (for now)
From Trencin, another train journey, this time across the Czech Republic to Prague. Prague was undeniably beautiful, especially the buildings: but a tourist zoo: I guess I arrived 15 years too late, i.e. just in time for the opening of … Continue reading
Posted in road
Tagged art nouveau, church, Cologne, concert, Czech Republic, Europe rail, Germany, McCoy Tyner, Prague
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trans-Slovakian
when I left Levoča this morning I took the bus to a quite ordinary town called Poprad – quite ordinary, that is, apart from its view of the High Tatras: These are the highest mountains in the whole Carpathian range, … Continue reading
Posted in road
Tagged castle, Europe rail, High Tatras, Poprad, Roman Empire, Slovakia, Trenčín
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in Arkada ego
Here are some photos of my luxurious room at the Hotel Arkada in Levoča in eastern Slovakia – which costs €35 (about 175 dirhams)! So cheap that kids’ allowance savings could cover it…
forest
on the way up to Spiš castle there was a forest. Boys and girls, this is what a forest looks like – the depth and the colours and textures! You can click on it to get a more detailed picture..
Spiš
The next stop was even better. Spiš castle completely dominates everything for miles around: I climbed up to it – quite a hike – and looked around the ruins, some of which go back 700 years or more: It has … Continue reading
Curved World 