Category: Asia and Oceania
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Welcome in Jordan is the greeting I received very often on the street, from complete strangers in Jordan. It is the emblematic phrase of one of the friendliest people I have ever dealt with, but as are all Middle Easterners. It was a solo trip made in August 2014, lasted 8 days and I moved…
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Double pair travel, all smooth I had the opportunity to visit Istanbul in a super unusual mode for me; it was a double trip. My first time in Turkey was a long weekend (4 days) in Istanbul alone, in July 2009. I never had very long stories, I had few companies who liked to travel,…
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The last anticipated event of the trip was the sight of the giant tortoise beach. It was not a given that we would be able to see them because it was not the best time of the year. The featured photo is not mine but from the beautiful pixabay site , the other photos are…
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The wadi and the pedicure fish. What I call pedicure fish were a surprise I enjoyed on that first day of the new year. Wadis are rivers, often running dry that in some cases have their beds carved into the rock, like small canyons. There are several, I chose to do only the Bani Khalid…
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Nizwa The ‘time came for the alternative New Year’s Eve, which I celebrated in the desert in Oman. From Muscat airport I took the rental car booked at the time; good price with the addition that fuel costs exactly half as much as in Italy. For so long I was hesitant about renting cars on…
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Many people go to visit Dubai just to see the world’s tallest skyscraper. I got there by a very comfortable bus from Abu Dhabi. The terminus was in the non-modern Bur Dubai area, with a nice reconstruction of old buildings in Al Fahidi). Spartan accommodation Nearby was the building where I had booked a bed,…
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Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque My real visit to Abu Dhabi began at the beautiful Mosque. I moved early in the morning; I had already seen it in its illuminated splendor the night before on the drive between the airport and downtown. Returning to the city again by bus, I had an unusual encounter. A gentleman…
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A classic snag in travel is not finding lodging. In Abu Dhabi it also happened to me because. I was without an Internet connection. The cost of living in Arab countries frightens many travelers. Avoiding restaurants, considering the convenience of public transportation, and taking an outside look at the major sites, there is only one…
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The Flood A major travel snag characterized my first day in Oman. The plan was to have an interlude in the Emirates. I would have my flight to Abu Dhabi in mid-afternoon and thus plenty of time to leave my large backpack in the airport depot and visit the large mosque that is nearby. But…
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Arriving in Oman, while considering what to do in Muscat, I waited in vain for the hotel shuttle. Little harm because my sixth sense had assumed Plan B. For the last time in my life, I chose to be without a local sim and use the phone only with wifi.I would always love to have…