Touching Tangier
Across the narrow mouth guarded by the rock of Gibraltar, lies the coast that Greek myths were made of, Hercules and his 12 labors among others, and the place where… Read more »
Author Archives: Varya
Casablanca Cacophony
For most Americans of my generation, the word “Casablanca” immediately evokes Humphrey Bogart in a white dinner jacket presiding over his cafe with Sam at the piano playing a lyric… Read more »
Morocco Magic
It is October 2018 and I am about to embark on a journey into Morocco with 11 stalwart companions. We will start in Casablanca and then move clockwise to the… Read more »
Bukhara Wanderings
On the road to Bukhara: from our bus I see block walls and tin-roofed concrete houses with poplar and fruit trees. An ancient tractor on the road as well as… Read more »
Samarkand the Spectacular
Samarkand — the name evokes a very exotic place of great beauty with markets rich with spices and covered bazaars. The reality both matches this legend and at the… Read more »
Uzbekistan Welcome
Once we are through a pushing shoving crowd of people at the immigration post, we are in Uzbekistan – a very different world than Kyrgyzstan which has surprised all of… Read more »
Kyrgyzstan Ending
Kyrgyzstan has some of the most consistently spectacular landscapes I have ever traveled through. Imagine a country with rugged snow-capped peaks like Switzerland, fjord-like waterways like Norway, alpine lakes like… Read more »
Kyrgyzstan Beginning
The four of us are sleeping together in a round yurt tonight, felted colorful rugs on the floor and gold and red embroidered tapestries encircling us. The sun set a… Read more »
Bishkek
It is a little after 5 am when our plane lands in Bishkek, capital of Kyrgyzstan, and the shadows of the high Tien Shan mountains are just beginning to appear… Read more »
Istanbul the Magnificent
Istanbul is an impressive product of its disparities — in religion, in culture, in economic status. The beautiful and the ugly are always not too far away. With… Read more »