World food
World food and the local cuisine, is for us one of the essential elements of travel. It is one of the most important ways of understanding local culture and therefore a huge part of our enjoyment of a new destination. We put real effort into discovering where the locals like to eat, what makes up the local cuisine, and consequently getting away from the tourist areas. It’s fair to say we would try virtually anything. Probably the most unusual food we have eaten is insects. Street food, bar food, upmarket restaurants and dodgy dives all have a part to play in this journey of discovery. As we seek out new experiences we are in search of even more unusual food. You won’t get these experiences from hiding in your hotel!
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Hanoi Revisited: Early Days In Vietnam
It’s funny how things even up in the end. After the tortuous India-Nepal border crossing, entering Vietnam is a dream. Our 4-and-a-bit hour flight from Delhi leaves before midnight and lands 5am local time, and at Hanoi we hit an empty airport, a passport check that takes thirty seconds, and a computer system which knows we already have our visas sorted. A matter of minutes later, we’ve bought and activated a Viettel SIM card, grabbed 3 million dong from the ATM (no really) and are on our way into the city. “Massage massage” call various tiny ladies on even tinier plastic stools outside each of the parlours in the tight…
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Exploring More Of Panama City
Once inside the Iglesia San Francisco de Asis in Plaza Bolivar, the lady behind the cluttered desk motions us towards a door at the side of the church and explains that the nativity scene within is a permanent display, not just for Christmas, and is one of four in Casco Viejo. It’s an extensive and impressive display, but passing through the next door we are cast into some sort of ethereal, pretend world. In this ante room there is, in working model form, an entire replica of an American town at Christmas time. Fairgrounds are alive, music ekes out from various venues, the Big Top issues sounds of a crowd….lights…
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Southwards To Treasure Beach Where The Pace Of Life Is……
If you picture yourself visiting the West Indies, what does that picture entail? Do you see yourself in an all-inclusive resort where everything is catered for and you are safe and comfortable? Or maybe on a cruise ship sampling the feel of different islands? Or do you imagine a tranquil hideaway where life is slowed down, where calm and peace rule, where you sip rum cocktails watching the sunset, where there’s hardly anyone on the beach, where you fall asleep to the sound of the waves and wake to the gentle sound of the surf and the smells of the village bakery? Our Jamaica tour continues…. For our last day…
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Street Food, Food Wars & This Unfair World: Port Antonio To Falmouth
We always think there’s something exciting about it when foods with unfamiliar names appear on the menu, and for reasons we can’t quite grasp, it’s even more exciting when it’s breakfast. So to discover that the traditional Jamaican breakfast is ackee and saltfish with johnny cakes and bammy is just irresistible. A side dish of callaloo? Even better! Jamaican food is tasty, often hot and spicy and full of unusual ingredients – though they do like to surround the tasty dishes with a large amount of rather weighty, carb-heavy accompaniments. And by the way the stories are true, there’s certainly no scrimping on the amount of alcohol in the cocktails…
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Stories And Histories: More Days In Rome
On our previous travels we have visited the Jewish quarter of Kazimierz in Krakow and walked through the chilling and horrific histories at Auschwitz and Birkenau, wandered through the former ghettoes of Venice, Thessaloniki and others, visited Jewish museums in several cities as well as Ann Frank’s House in Amsterdam, learning again and again of the bigoted persecution of people of that faith. Even so, there is a different element to Rome’s equivalent, the former ghetto now known as Communita Ebraico, knowing that creation of this particular ghetto took place under the watchful eye and direct personal instruction of the Pope, who ensured that, as with all other ghettoes, the…
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Piazzas, Porticos & Pasta: Notes From Bologna
Bologna’s famous porticos are immediately evident even as we make our way from the railway station to our apartment close to the heart of the city – not surprising given just how far they extend through the city streets. Originally constructed from wood to provide additional display areas for shopkeepers, these attractive extensions now take on a variety of forms: sweeping brickwork arches, concrete and steel squares, segmented tunnels. Handily providing protection from both the summer sun and the winter rain, these porticos stretch improbably for nearly 25 miles around Bologna’s streets, giving it something of a unique look. Well certainly unusual even if not unique. Bologna enjoys a reputation…
- Africa, Asia, Central America, England, Greece, Independent travel, India, Mexico, North America, Photography, Transport, Travel Blog, Turkey, World food
Questions About Travel
Travelling the way we do, in regular lengthy stretches, is not something everyone is fortunate enough, well enough or even inclined to do. Whatever your chosen style of travel, there are some questions which all of us who do so are asked on a regular basis. Like… What do you miss about home? Answer: very little. My stock answer is “proper English ale” which is true, I do find myself craving a good pint sometimes. Michaela meanwhile goes straight for the roast lamb and mint sauce. With both of our families being scattered around the country, we always make a round of visits on our return and probably don’t see…
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Tales Of Smut, Keys & Turtles: Last Days In Mexico
We described Tulum in our last post as being too over developed, too touristy and very much too over priced for our liking, with an enormous amount of further development in the midst of construction, but, you know, everywhere has redeeming features – it’s just that in places like Tulum you have to look a bit deeper to find them. The music in some of the bars in the main street is simply too loud to hold a conversation, so loud in fact that I’m reminded of what my Dad used to say. “I do detest pubs which are so loud that I can’t hear myself drink”. But as we…
- Belize, Central America, Independent travel, Photography, Transport, Travel Blog, Wildlife, World food
Out Of Mexico And In To Belize
A dreadlocked guy lazes in a hammock and raises his hand as we alight from the ferry. “Welcome to paradise” he beams. The delicious smell of barbecued seafood drifts across the sandy track, a smiling girl clocks our backpacks and suggests we taste the local rum before we walk any further. We turn right, heading to where our next bed is. The breeze is deliciously warm, the sun incredibly hot. And everything is different, just a short journey has brought us to a different culture which feels so different that we could call it a different world, let alone a different culture. No longer is there any significant Spanish influence,…
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Ancient Sites & Plunging Cenotes: Our Time In Yucatan
After several hours of walking the ancient sites in soaring temperatures and 100% humidity, jumping from the rock platform down into the cool, cool waters of the cenote is exhilarating and refreshing beyond belief. Swimming in one is a pure joy, but more of that later. A half hour collectivo ride out of Valladolid is one of the so called “new” seven wonders of the world, the extensive remains of the ancient Maya city of Chechen Itza. Paying our entry fee and ambling towards the first section of the city, the first thing that strikes us is the sheer number of visitors. It’s not even peak time of day yet…
