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…

Najac in Occitania

23 November 2023 | Author/Destination: | Rubric: General Reading Time:  4 minutes

© Krzysztof Golik/cc-by-sa-4.0

© Krzysztof Golik/cc-by-sa-4.0

Najac is a commune in the Aveyron department in southern France. Najac station has rail connections to Toulouse, Figeac and Aurillac.   read more…

Theme Week Djibouti – Dikhil

22 November 2023 | Author/Destination: | Rubric: General Reading Time:  5 minutes

Entrance to Dikhil © Cjulien21/cc-by-sa-3.0

Entrance to Dikhil © Cjulien21/cc-by-sa-3.0

Dikhil is a town in the western Dikhil Region of Djibouti. Lying east of Lake Abbe. It is situated about 122 km (76 mi) southwest of Djibouti City and 12 km (7.5 mi) north of the border with Ethiopia. It serves as the administrative centre of the Dikhil Region, and is home to the Afar and Somali ethnic groups. The town develops gardens and fruit trees.   read more…

Portrait: Montesquieu, a French judge, man of letters, historian, and political philosopher

22 November 2023 | Author/Destination: | Rubric: Portrait Reading Time:  33 minutes

Statue of Baron de Montesquieu in Bordeaux © Als33120/cc-by-a-4.0

Statue of Baron de Montesquieu in Bordeaux © Als33120/cc-by-a-4.0

Charles Louis de Secondat, Baron de La Brède et de Montesquieu, generally referred to as simply Montesquieu, was a French judge, man of letters, historian, and political philosopher. He is the principal source of the theory of separation of powers, which is implemented in many constitutions throughout the world. He is also known for doing more than any other author to secure the place of the word despotism in the political lexicon. His anonymously published The Spirit of Law (1748), which was received well in both Great Britain and the American colonies, influenced the Founding Fathers of the United States in drafting the U.S. Constitution.   read more…

Theme Week Djibouti – Tadjoura

21 November 2023 | Author/Destination: | Rubric: General Reading Time:  5 minutes

Tadjoura, the White city © Miaz85/cc-by-sa-4.0

Tadjoura, the White city © Miaz85/cc-by-sa-4.0

Tadjoura (Afar: Tagórri; Arabic: Tajūrā’, Somali: Tajuura) is one of the oldest towns in Djibouti and the capital of the Tadjourah Region. The town evolved into an early Islamic center with the arrival of Muslims shortly after the Hijra. An important port for many centuries, it was ruled by a succession of polities, including the Ifat Sultanate, Adal Sultanate, the Ottoman Empire, France until Djibouti‘s independence in 1977. Lying on the Gulf of Tadjoura, it is home to a population of around 45,000 inhabitants. It is the third-largest city in the country after Djibouti and Ali Sabieh.   read more…

Hamburg City Hall

21 November 2023 | Author/Destination: | Rubric: General, Hamburg Reading Time:  11 minutes

© Daniel Schwen/cc-by-sa-2.5

© Daniel Schwen/cc-by-sa-2.5

Hamburg City Hall (German: Hamburger Rathaus) is the seat of local government of Hamburg, Germany. It is the seat of the government of Hamburg and as such, the seat of one of Germany’s 16 state parliaments. The Rathaus is located in the Altstadt quarter in the city center, at the Rathausmarkt square, and near the lake Binnenalster and the central station. Constructed from 1886 to 1897, the city hall still houses its original governmental functions with the office of the First Mayor of Hamburg and the meeting rooms for the Parliament and the Senate (the city’s executive branch).   read more…

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