Clovelly in Devon

29 November 2023 | Author/Destination: | Rubric: General Reading Time:  6 minutes

Donkeys outside Clovelly Post Office © Adrian Pingstone

Donkeys outside Clovelly Post Office © Adrian Pingstone

Clovelly is a privately owned harbour village in the Torridge district of Devon, England. The settlement and surrounding land belongs to John Rous who inherited it from his mother in 1983. He belongs to the Hamlyn family who have managed the village since 1738.   read more…

Marseille Cathedral

28 November 2023 | Author/Destination: | Rubric: General Reading Time:  7 minutes

© Chabe01/cc-by-sa-4.0

© Chabe01/cc-by-sa-4.0

Marseille Cathedral (French: Cathédrale Sainte-Marie-Majeure de Marseille or Cathédrale de la Major) is a Roman Catholic cathedral, and a national monument of France, located in Marseille. It has been a basilica minor since 1896. It is the seat of the Archdiocese of Marseille (formerly the Diocese of Marseille until its elevation in 1948).   read more…

Bournemouth in Dorset

27 November 2023 | Author/Destination: | Rubric: General Reading Time:  7 minutes

© flickr.com - NMOS332/cc-by-sa-2.0

© flickr.com – NMOS332/cc-by-sa-2.0

Bournemouth is a coastal resort town on the south coast in the Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole borough of Dorset, England. The town’s urban subdivision had a population of 187,503 at the 2011 census making it the largest town in the county; the town is part of the South East Dorset conurbation, which has a population of 465,000.   read more…

Great Stirrup Cay in the Bahamas

26 November 2023 | Author/Destination: | Rubric: General Reading Time:  11 minutes

Great Strirrup Cay © Armsoo/cc-by-3.0

Great Strirrup Cay © Armsoo/cc-by-3.0

Great Stirrup Cay is a 268-acre (108 ha) island that is part of the Berry Islands in the Bahamas. Norwegian Cruise Line purchased the island from the Belcher Oil Company in 1977 and developed it into a private island for their cruise ship passengers. The northern part of the island has a sandy beach surrounded by rocks with snorkeling areas. The southern part features a helicopter airfield (with a sign reading “Great Stirrup Cay International Airport”), a large area without vegetation, and numerous concrete blocks. These are all remnants of a previous U.S. military installation and satellite tracking station. The island’s lighthouse was originally constructed in 1863 by the Imperial Lighthouse Service. Great Stirrup Cay is adjacent to Little Stirrup Cay, Royal Caribbean Cruises’ private island.   read more…

Theme Week Djibouti – Djibouti City

25 November 2023 | Author/Destination: | Rubric: General Reading Time:  7 minutes

Djibouti Port © flickr.com - CharlesFred/cc-by-sa-3.0

Djibouti Port © flickr.com – CharlesFred/cc-by-sa-3.0

Djibouti (also called Djibouti City and Jibuti in early Western texts) is the eponymous capital of Djibouti. It is located in the coastal Djibouti Region on the Gulf of Tadjoura. Djibouti has a population of around 600,000 inhabitants, which counts for 54% of the country’s population. The settlement was founded in 1888 by the French, on land leased from the ruling Somali and Afar Sultans. During the ensuing period, it served as the capital of French Somaliland and its successor the French Territory of the Afars and Issas.   read more…

Halles de Dijon

25 November 2023 | Author/Destination: | Rubric: General, Bon appétit, Shopping Reading Time:  4 minutes

© Arnaud 25/cc-by-sa-3.0

© Arnaud 25/cc-by-sa-3.0

The central halls of Dijon are market halls in cast-iron architecture built from 1873 to 1875 in Dijon, Côte-d’Or, in Burgundy-Franche-Comté, France. They have been listed as historic monuments since 1975. The halls of Dijon are surrounded by numerous restaurants and cafés.   read more…

Theme Week Djibouti – Obock

24 November 2023 | Author/Destination: | Rubric: General Reading Time:  11 minutes

© Luc Michel/cc-by-sa-3.0

© Luc Michel/cc-by-sa-3.0

Obock (also Obok, Afar: Hayyú) is a small port town in Djibouti. It is located on the northern shore of the Gulf of Tadjoura, where it opens out into the Gulf of Aden. The town is home to an airstrip and has ferries to Djibouti City. The French form Obock derives from Arabic “Oboh”, deformation of Oboki, a name given to the Wadi Dar’i in its middle part, upstream of its coastal delta.   read more…

Kafar Qasem in Israel

24 November 2023 | Author/Destination: | Rubric: General, Union for the Mediterranean Reading Time:  4 minutes

Kafar Qasem Memorial © Avi1111

Kafar Qasem Memorial © Avi1111

Kafr Qasim, also spelled as Kafr Qassem, Kufur Kassem, Kfar Kassem and Kafar Kassem, is a hill-top city in Israel with an Arab population. It is located about 20 km (12 mi) east of Tel Aviv, on the Israeli side of the Green Line separating Israel and the West Bank, in the southern portion of the “Little Triangle” of Arab-Israeli towns and villages. In 2021 its population was 24,757. The town was the site of the Kafr Qasim massacre, in which the Israel Border Police killed 49 civilians on October 29, 1956. On February 12, 2008, Israeli Minister of the Interior Meir Sheetrit declared Kafr Qasim a city in a ceremony held at the town.   read more…

Theme Week Djibouti – Ali Sabieh

23 November 2023 | Author/Destination: | Rubric: General Reading Time:  6 minutes

© Skilla1st/cc-by-sa-4.0

© Skilla1st/cc-by-sa-4.0

Ali Sabieh (Somali: Cali Sabiix) is the second largest city in Djibouti. It is situated about 98 kilometres (61 miles) Southwest of Djibouti City and 10 km (6 mi) north of the border with Ethiopia. It sprawls on a wide basin surrounded by granitic mountains on all sides. Ali Sabieh mild climate makes it a popular tourist destination for Djiboutians. The famous landmark of Ali Sabieh is located near the city.   read more…

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