Theme Week Leinster – Navan

24 May 2023 | Author/Destination: | Rubric: General Reading Time:  8 minutes

Trimgate Street © geograph.org.uk - James Allan/cc-by-sa-2.0

Trimgate Street © geograph.org.uk – James Allan/cc-by-sa-2.0

Navan (Irish: An Uaimh, meaning “the Cave”) is the county town of County Meath, Ireland. In 2016, it had a population of 30,173, making it the tenth largest settlement in Ireland. It is at the confluence of the River Boyne and Blackwater, around 50 km northwest of Dublin.   read more…

Theme Week Leinster – Drogheda

23 May 2023 | Author/Destination: | Rubric: General, UNESCO World Heritage Reading Time:  8 minutes

© flickr.com - William Murphy/cc-by-sa-2.0

© flickr.com – William Murphy/cc-by-sa-2.0

Drogheda (Irish: Droichead Átha, meaning “bridge at the ford”) is an industrial and port town in County Louth on the east coast of Ireland, 56 km (35 mi) north of Dublin. It is located on the Dublin–Belfast corridor on the east coast of Ireland, mostly in County Louth but with the south fringes of the town in County Meath, 49 km (30 mi) north of Dublin. Drogheda has a population of approximately 41,000 inhabitants (2016), making it the eleventh largest settlement by population in all of Ireland, and the largest town in the Republic of Ireland by both population and area. It is the last bridging point on the River Boyne before it enters the Irish Sea. The UNESCO World Heritage Site of Newgrange is located 8 km (5.0 mi) west of the town.   read more…

Yazd in Iran

23 May 2023 | Author/Destination: | Rubric: General, UNESCO World Heritage Reading Time:  7 minutes

© flickr.com - Ninara/cc-by-2.0

© flickr.com – Ninara/cc-by-2.0

Yazd, formerly also known as Yezd, is the capital of Yazd province, Iran. The city is 270 km (170 mi) southeast of Isfahan. At the 2016 census, its population was 529,673. Since 2017, the historical city of Yazd is recognized as a World Heritage Site by UNESCO.   read more…

Theme Week Leinster

22 May 2023 | Author/Destination: | Rubric: General, Theme Weeks Reading Time:  8 minutes

Johnstown Castle in Wexford © DeFacto/cc-by-sa-4.0

Johnstown Castle in Wexford © DeFacto/cc-by-sa-4.0

Leinster (Irish: Laighin or Cúige Laighean) is one of the four provinces of Ireland, situated in the southeast and east of Ireland. The province comprises the ancient Kingdoms of Meath, Leinster and Osraige. Following the 12th-century Norman invasion of Ireland, the historic “fifths” of Leinster and Meath gradually merged, mainly due to the impact of the Pale, which straddled both, thereby forming the present-day province of Leinster. The ancient kingdoms were shired into a number of counties for administrative and judicial purposes. In later centuries, local government legislation has prompted further sub-division of the historic counties.   read more…

Isigny-sur-Mer in Normandy

22 May 2023 | Author/Destination: | Rubric: General Reading Time:  7 minutes

Town hall © Ikmo-ned/cc-by-sa-3.0

Town hall © Ikmo-ned/cc-by-sa-3.0

Isigny-sur-Mer (literally Isigny on Sea) is a commune in the Calvados department and Normandy region of north-western France. It is part of the communauté de communes Isigny-Omaha Intercom, the 59 communes of which have a combined population of 27,181. Situated in the fertile grassland region – known as the Baie des Veys – which constitutes the joint estuary of four rivers, Isigny is an important centre of the dairy industry. The town is famous for its AOC butter and cream, as well as for the production of Mimolette, Pont-l’Évêque, Camembert, and Trésor d’Isigny cheeses, among others, made by the Isigny Sainte-Mère co-operative. Oysters have been extensively cultivated in the nearby waters of the Baie des Veys since the mid 20th century. A major river, the Vire, passes through the commune.   read more…

Morimond Abbey in Haute-Marne

21 May 2023 | Author/Destination: | Rubric: General Reading Time:  7 minutes

Reproduction of a 1789 plan of the abbey © Frédéric BRICE/cc-by-sa-3.0

Reproduction of a 1789 plan of the abbey © Frédéric BRICE/cc-by-sa-3.0

Morimond Abbey is a religious complex in Parnoy-en-Bassigny, Haute-Marne department, in the Champagne-Ardenne region of France. It was the fourth of the four great daughter abbeys of Cîteaux Abbey, of primary importance in the spread of the Cistercian Order, along with La Ferté to the south, Pontigny to the west and Clairvaux to the north.   read more…

Gulf Stream

20 May 2023 | Author/Destination: | Rubric: General, Environment Reading Time:  8 minutes

Evolution of the Gulf Stream © ngdc.noaa.gov - RedAndr/cc-by-sa-4.0

Evolution of the Gulf Stream © ngdc.noaa.gov – RedAndr/cc-by-sa-4.0

The Gulf Stream, together with its northern extension the North Atlantic Drift, is a warm and swift Atlantic ocean current that originates in the Gulf of Mexico and flows through the Straits of Florida and up the eastern coastline of the United States then veers east near 36 latitude (North Carolina) and moves toward Northwest Europe as the North Atlantic Current. The process of western intensification causes the Gulf Stream to be a northwards accelerating current off the east coast of North America. At about 40°0′N 30°0′W, it splits in two, with the northern stream, the North Atlantic Drift, crossing to Northern Europe and the southern stream, the Canary Current, recirculating off West Africa.   read more…

Cape May in New Jersey

19 May 2023 | Author/Destination: | Rubric: General Reading Time:  10 minutes

Beach Avenue © Smallbones

Beach Avenue © Smallbones

Cape May (sometimes Cape May City) is a city located at the southern tip of Cape May Peninsula in Cape May County in the U.S. state of New Jersey. Located where the Delaware Bay meets the Atlantic Ocean, it is one of the country’s oldest vacation resort destinations. The city, and all of Cape May County, is part of the Ocean City metropolitan statistical area, and is part of the PhiladelphiaWilmingtonCamden, PA-NJ-DEMD combined statistical area, also known as the Delaware Valley or Philadelphia metropolitan area. As of the 2020 United States census, the city’s year-round population was 2,768, a decrease of 839 (−23.3%) from the 2010 census count of 3,607, which in turn reflected a decline of 427 (−10.6%) from the 4,034 counted in the 2000 census. In the summer, Cape May’s population is expanded by as many as 40,000 to 50,000 visitors. The entire city of Cape May is designated the Cape May Historic District, a National Historic Landmark due to its concentration of Victorian architecture. Cape May was recognized as one of the top 10 beaches in the United States by the Travel Channel. It is part of the South Jersey region of the state.   read more…

Ostend in West Flanders

18 May 2023 | Author/Destination: | Rubric: General Reading Time:  6 minutes

© panoramio.com - bogdan1971/cc-by-sa-3.0

© panoramio.com – bogdan1971/cc-by-sa-3.0

Ostend (Dutch: Oostende, French: Ostende, German: Ostende, West Flemish: Ostende) is a coastal city and municipality, located in the province of West Flanders in the Flemish Region of Belgium. It comprises the boroughs of Mariakerke, Raversijde, Stene and Zandvoorde, and the city of Ostend proper – the largest on the Belgian coast.   read more…

Return to TopReturn to Top