Kyoto on a cold winter evening. Add to that, torrential rain. The usually cold, silent, brooding dark alleys become even more mysterious, suspiciously reflecting the red lights of the paper lamps that line these alleys, welcoming passers-by to peer into the curtained doors of…
How long For our first visit to Japan, we wanted to target the highlights but still seek out a few culturally and historically significant locations which initially seemed a bit out of the way for a first timer. We spent…
“This is the dream of all the world. The dream is to live in Granada. You know, work in the morning, have a one-hour nap in the afternoon, and at night go out and have that life. Go out and…
Remember the launch of Apple Maps? Placing you at unknown destinations, instructing you to drive on non-existent roads, or through built-up structures? For our 7 year old, Google Maps in Crete got close to the infamy. Not inaccurate, but suboptimal. Close enough…
Cordoba, in the middle of winter. It was late (9pm) and the kids were hungry, the saving grace of an ice cream bar on the Roman Bridge having lost its charm by now. We started driving towards our hotel. As we entered…
Driving in Europe has never been an issue for us so far, but has always resulted in unique stories, and the frequency of such stories is only increasing. In Greece, we had not one, not two, not three, but four such…
A jolt here and there, but nothing significant, as our flight from Thessaloniki glided to a smooth landing on the island of Santorini. Viraj (our 7 year old) was especially excited as the plane was landing on a volcano. We…
It has been 7 years since we drove through France’s Loire Valley in 2009, a fantasy land of fairy-tale chateaus big and small, ranging from the magnificent Chateau Chambord, the idyllic Azay le Rideau, the decorative Chenonceau, the magnificent gardens of Villandry, the…
Born in Damascus, near modern day Syria, a young prince of age 20, Abd al-Rahman and his family were overthrown as the ruling family in a revolt in 750 AD. The rebellion was led by the Abbasids who were ruthless…
On our first trip to Paris we took the Metropolitain to Place de la Concorde, and as we stepped out of the station, we found pouring rain and an unsuccessful acrobatic attempt by our feeble umbrella to battle the gusty Parisian wind.…