Persian Gulf

13 May 2025 | Author/Destination: | Rubric: General Reading Time:  7 minutes

West Bay district of Doha in Qatar, as seen from the corniche at night © Alex Sergeev - www.asergeev.com/cc-by-sa-3.0

West Bay district of Doha in Qatar, as seen from the corniche at night © Alex Sergeev – www.asergeev.com/cc-by-sa-3.0

The Persian Gulf, also known as the Arabian Gulf, is a mediterranean sea in West Asia. The body of water is an extension of the Arabian Sea and the larger Indian Ocean located between Iran and the Arabian Peninsula. It is connected to the Gulf of Oman in the east by the Strait of Hormuz. The river delta of the Shatt al-Arab forms the northwest shoreline. The Persian Gulf has many fishing grounds, extensive reefs (mostly rocky, but also coral), and abundant pearl oysters, however its ecology has been damaged by industrialization and oil spills.   read more…

Old World Village in California

12 May 2025 | Author/Destination: | Rubric: General Reading Time:  3 minutes

© Dialh/cc-by-sa-4.0

© Dialh/cc-by-sa-4.0

Old World Village is a German enclave in Huntington Beach, California. It features shops, restaurants, a chapel, and a hotel. Many of the proprietors of its businesses live above their establishments. This live-work arrangement is unusual for Orange County.   read more…

Tartiflette

11 May 2025 | Author/Destination: | Rubric: General, Bon appétit Reading Time:  3 minutes

© Benoît Prieur

© Benoît Prieur

Tartiflette is a dish from Savoy in the French Alps. It is made with potatoes, reblochon cheese, lardons and onions.   read more…

Mafia Island in Tanzania

10 May 2025 | Author/Destination: | Rubric: General Reading Time:  6 minutes

© flickr.com - Nina R/cc-by-2.0

© flickr.com – Nina R/cc-by-2.0

Mafia Island or Chole Shamba (Kisiwa cha Mafia, in Swahili) is an island of The Mafia Archipelago located in Mafia District in the southern Pwani Region of Tanzania across the Mafia Channel. The island is the third largest in Tanzanian ocean territory, but is not administratively included within the semi-autonomous region of Zanzibar, which has been politically separate since 1890. Mafia Island forms the largest part of Mafia District, one of the six administrative districts in the Pwani Region. As the Mafia Archipelago’s main island, it’s sometimes called Chole Shamba, meaning Chole farmlands in Swahili. This is in opposition to the historic settlement of Chole Mjini (Chole town) on Chole Island inside Mafia Bay. The island’s population is over 65,000. The economy is based on fishing, subsistence agriculture and the market in Kilindoni. The island attracts some tourists, mainly scuba divers, birdwatchers, game fishermen, and people seeking relaxation.   read more…

Nha Trang in Vietnam

9 May 2025 | Author/Destination: | Rubric: General Reading Time:  7 minutes

Po Nagar Hindu temples complex © Ms Sarah Welch

Po Nagar Hindu temples complex © Ms Sarah Welch

Nha Trang is a coastal city and capital of Khánh Hòa Province, on the South Central Coast of Vietnam. It is bounded on the north by Ninh Hoà town, on the south by Cam Ranh city and on the west by Diên Khánh District. The city had a population of about 535,000 people in 2023. An area of 12.87 km² (4.97 sq mi) of the western communes of Diên An and Diên Toàn is planned to be merged into Nha Trang which will make its new area 265.47 km² (102.50 sq mi) based on the approval of the Prime Minister of Vietnam in September 2012.   read more…

Solvang in California

8 May 2025 | Author/Destination: | Rubric: General Reading Time:  5 minutes

Tivoli Square © flickr.com - Allie_Caulfield/cc-by-2.0

Tivoli Square © flickr.com – Allie_Caulfield/cc-by-2.0

Solvang (Danish for “sunny field”) is a city in Santa Barbara County, California, United States. Located in the Santa Ynez Valley, the population was 6,126 at the 2020 census, up from 5,245 at the 2010 census. Solvang was founded in 1911 and incorporated as a city on May 1, 1985. Solvang has been described as “The Danish Capital of America”.   read more…

Cappella Paolina in Vatican City

7 May 2025 | Author/Destination: | Rubric: General Reading Time:  5 minutes

© Sailko/cc-by-3.0

© Sailko/cc-by-3.0

The Cappella Paolina (the Pauline Chapel) is a chapel in the Apostolic Palace, Vatican City. It is separated from the Sistine Chapel by the Sala Regia. It is not on any of the regular tourist itineraries.   read more…

Route des Grands Crus in Burgundy

6 May 2025 | Author/Destination: | Rubric: General, Bon voyage, Bon appétit Reading Time:  3 minutes

Route des Grands Crus sign © Gsherry

Route des Grands Crus sign © Gsherry

The Route des Grands Crus (roughly, “road of the great wines“) is the name of a tourist route situated in Burgundy, France. The approximately 60-kilometre route runs along the foot of the Côte d’Or escarpment, from Dijon in the north to Santenay in the south. Thus it runs through many of the great appellations of Burgundy wine, hence the name of the route. It takes the visitor through the vineyards of the Côte de Nuits and the Côte de Beaune and the back hills (Hautes-Côtes) behind and above the wine slopes.   read more…

Sumy in Ukraine

5 May 2025 | Author/Destination: | Rubric: General Reading Time:  5 minutes

Trinity Cathedral © Черненко Віктор Олександрович/cc-by-sa-4.0

Trinity Cathedral © Черненко Віктор Олександрович/cc-by-sa-4.0

Sumy is a city in northeastern Ukraine. It serves as the administrative center of Sumy Oblast. The city is situated on the banks of the Psel River and has a population of 256,474 (2022 estimate), making it the 23rd-largest in the country. The city of Sumy was founded in the 1650s by Cossacks within the historical region of Sloboda Ukraine.   read more…

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