If it’s useful travel information you might be after, ask yourself: are these claims publication up to date plus correctly researched? In case you are holding an e book known as “Mainland Greece”, for instance, do a quick test. Consider a city in landmass Greece you understand, for example Thrace, and find out just how rapidly it takes to find the particular area on Thrace and exactly how useful the data will be concerning lodging, transportation, eating places, points of interest, etc .

Easy-to-navigate handbooks with great indices are just the ticket. They should be small, so you can suit them in your hand baggage and inexpensive enough System.Drawing.Bitmap shed them you don’t brain. The rule of thumb is the fact that a couple of illustrative photos are good they show serious objective on the part of writer plus publisher to inform you but too many photos diminish the standard and amount of the particular usable info. There ought to be brief traditional nuggets plus useful insider traveling guidelines. Right now there also needs to become complementary online learning resources shown with regard to up-to-the-minute details.

Whether it’s not useful info you happen to be right after, however, you wish to feed your travel dreams and inform her regarding nations with the ages then ask: which had written this guide? There has been the “colonization” associated with nations by means of traveling composing. I mean that certain authors within English composing have grown to be inextricably associated with writings regarding certain nations. These are simply the final word about them.

If you are right after images and looking through a pictorial traveling reserve, then you definitely should ask:

just how much has got the photographer introduced associated with his/her very own vision in to the book? That can compare with that will places the traveler’s tooth upon advantage over paging through a guide upon Ancient rome plus viewing the same kind of viewpoints of the Coliseum as well as the Spanish language Steps. When the professional photographer and the individual who had written the written text (there will always be several text message within a pictorial traveling book) has not launched a few personal concept or perspective then you definitely don’t genuinely have the traveling publication worthy of title.

Taken in the cliffs of Moher (Ireland)

Canon EOS 450D + Sigma 17-50mm f2.8 EX DC OS HSM

Flickr | 500px | Panoramio
Photoblogs | Cool Photoblogs

First, we fly from D.C. to Tokyo, which is a flight time of about 13 hours 41 minutes arriving the next day.

Then we get a 2 hours 50 minute Layover in Tokyo, which is probably just enough time to comfortably go through security at Narita Airport. I noticed on their web site that when you’re making international connections, you have to get screened again.

We then fly out of Tokyo to Singapore, and are in the air for another 7 hours 5 minutes, and once again, we arrive in Singapore the day after, so two days after we’ve departed D.C.

We have a 7 hour 20 minute layover in Singapore which, sadly, is in the middle of the night. I don’t know yet what we’re doing during that time – but I wish it was a better time of day to see the Gardens by the Bay.

From Singapore, we fly to Jakarta, and after a 2 hour 45 minute layover, we head to our final destination in East Java.

How do you cope with long flights and layovers? What’s the longest flight you’ve ever been on? And tips for sleeping in economy class?

This is a lada. I just like this car. Moving on,

Many people haven’t taken a step into Serbia, I mean, I probably wouldn’t have either if I wasn’t Serbian. Usually people will say “oh I really want to go to Greece or Spain or Mexico”. I get it.  Yeah those places are awesome, southern, hot, passionate countries, and I feel like people don’t realize that places like Serbia or Montenegro are like that too.

ANYWAYS, enough of this. I shall show you my walk house.  Well this is  pretty much pictures of two streets. BUT THESE STREETS ARE FILLED WITH MYSTERY AND SECRETS.

I never noticed how much graffiti Belgrade is covered in, and in completely unusual places too.

a close-up.

I walk those stairs everyday, which you’re probably thinking that’s not that bad, but this is the check point where all of a sudden my bladder kicks in and I have to pee. I will make bladder strong.

i don’t know who these people are, but its beautiful

okay, so 3/4′s up those stairs, there’s this beautiful apartment building on the left. I found out they renovated this apartment building into a restaurant. At night, this soft romantic aura fills this space.

walking past the restaurant, straight ahead, is this gypsy shack made out of crates and cardboard. its doesn’t look big, but it’s a huge gypsy house. These ones have a bit of a hoarding issue.

another close-up.

I just can’t stop taking pictures of this. I’m in love with the rustic worn-out brick buildings,

This mix between graffiti and old brick buildings have this type of  ”Romeo + Juliette” vibe. You know, the movie with Leonardo Dicaprio and Claire Danes? This city has a weird mixture of old and new.  And it’s romantic, and mysterious, and delightful.

This is my favorite one.

I got a little off topic. I guess what I was trying to say with this entry is that it’s neat how many different languages you hear just bar hopping. It really makes me want to be a polygot (or someone who speaks 5 or more languages) It’s such a beautiful thing to be able to communicate and I forget that spending so much time in America and in my comfort zone. It’s nice to be the one struggling to communicate every once in a while because it reminds you how complex and beautiful language and communication are. Sometimes I feel myself falling into a place where I don’t want to hear from or communicate with anyone and this just puts it in perspective to me how lucky I am to even be able to communicate with all the people in my life. It’s really eye-opening and the main reason why I want to spend a lot of time living in places where English is not the predominate language. 

[photos from my trip to greece in summer 2009. i also visited santorini, ios and rhodes.]

Thailand ønsker et tett samarbeid med Frankrike for å revolusjonere landets jernbanesatsing, skriver Bangkok Post her. Rammen på prosjektet er formidable 60 milliarder US dollar.

Dette betyr at Thailand trolig velger et samarbeid med Frankrike om det nasjonale rutenettet, mens landet samtidig vil samarbeide med Kina om en speed-train rute gjennom Laos til Sør-Kina. Dette blir altså to adskilte prosjekter, og det er det interne rutenettet som blir prioritert høyest, først med en linje til Chiang Mai, og deretter med linjer til Hua Hin og Pattaya. Etter planen skal disse linjene være operative innen åtte-ti år.
Sist uke ble det kjent at Thailands transportmyndigheter planlegger to måter å reise med speed train til Chiang Mai. Den ene linjen skal ha 12 stoppesteder, men likevel ikke ta mer enn 3,5 timer fra Bangkok til Chiang Mai. Samtidig planlegges en “fast line” som bare vil ta vel 2 timer. Dette vil opplagt revolusjonere både transport og turisme i Thailand.
Thailand oppretter en egen organisasjon som fristilles fra det nåværende jernbanebyråkratiet i Thailand, og som på helt fritt grunnlag skal samarbeide med det som trolig blir franske jernbaneeksper. Den franske statsministeren og utenriksministeren besøkte Thailand i februar, transportministeren var på besøk tidligere denne måneden, og de to lands myndigheter tar sikte på å undertegne en intensjonsavtale neste måned.

Songbird Meadows Bed and Breakfastis a darling nest of 3 cottages tucked up in the hills above Johnson City. Upon exiting the highway you twist and turn up a long dirt road that ends at Chickadee cottage.The experience can only be described as quaint and sweet. Time didn’t allow for walking the multitude of trails extending outward but each morning started with bird songs sweet and pleasant. It was a delightful little escape and worth the trek up the hillside to find. The accommodations comfortable and the gentle welcoming consistent with the experience – charming.

Sometimes you feel like you just need to get out of the house and immerse yourself in the natural world.

Instructions
Blend the fresh basil, half of the olive and then pine nuts for 2 minutes, then add the second half of olive
oil to the mix if the mixture is too think add some water.
Fry lightly the red capsicum and artichokes.
Combine the ready fettuccine with the pesto and nutrientinal yeast until it is well coated. Then add
the red capsicums and artichokes.

I had heard quite a long while ago about the litter left by climbers on this once revered and respected Mountain – not to mention the bodies. This latest report presents the truth of how LOW this Mountain has fallen. Its beauty is only perceived at a distance. From close-up it is ever more disgusting. It is the foreign climbers seeking shallow and questionable ‘Glory’ who are to blame – but also Nepal, seemingly a failed State; and the irresponsible businesses which facilitate the shameless trek to the summit.

Penalara Natural Park. 18 May 2012.

18 May 2013 is not the same.  I view snapshots of my sites over the internet.  Blizzard-like conditions.

      In Cambridge I remain.

    Body feels strange.

Constrained.

This year I am forced  to be more tame, while within occurs the usual seasonal change.   Calling me to displace,

                                  once again,

to a wilder

and more open space.

Penalara Natural Park. 18 May 2013. (Photo courtesy of Venta Marcelino)

“The minute I heard my first love story,
I started looking for you, not knowing
how blind that was.
Lovers don’t finally meet somewhere.
They’re in each other all along.”
― Rumi,

During this beautiful island wedding ceremony the bride mentioned Rumi being her and her grooms favorite poet! digging into the world of this marvelous mens poetry i can only agree with her and i will most certainly always bare in my mind and heart her promise to her groom which not only made her guests cry but also myself, her wedding planner: “all my life i was looking for you and i found myself” …. after having seen so many vows, so many weddings, so many ceremonies from various cultures and various mentalities, i must say that this was the most moving wedding ceremony that i have ever experienced and i am so happy that i was part of this … not only an island wedding but a magic celebration of love!

planing a wedding is one thing, planning a destination wedding a whole different story and planning a wedding in sardinia a whole different world! people always ask me how i do this, how can i plan something in a country, a place that i have never been to, dont really speak the language and do not know the market, i always say “that is exactly it” the challenge of the new, the roads untravelled, the world unknown. always planning events at the same place at one point or the other leads you to a certain kind of fatigue, and this is what kills creativity, stepping out of the boarders of the known and exploring new markets is what keeps the world of any creative mind fresh and aware.

when i first spoke to the couple it was actually already too late to get a planer on board for a destination wedding, this usually needs a solid year of planning and not only 3 months, especially when we are talking about 116 guests and an island with a very short season, namely sardinia. anyhow march 25th the island and the wedding location opened their gates so i had to be fast and travelled to sardinia soon after. the first hurdle where the flights, how in the world could i reach an island in the mediterranean which was basically closed for public until the beginning of june? well, easy jet was the answer and 12 hours later at 10:30pm i finally reached sardinia.

anyhow, i was glad that the car rental company was still open and i drove off, trying to find the wedding venue. 50 minutes later, after dirt roads which literally swallowed my little fiat panda and spit it out again in mud holes i arrived at a wooden gate in the middle of nowhere during a pitch black spring night. Open Sesame …. the gate opened. it was too dark for me to see or notice anything about my surroundings. i went to sleep!

the next day, finally the beauty and the magic of this place revealed itself to me … petra segreta, the garden eden, an amazing place tucked away in the mountains of beautiful sardinia overlooking the costa smeralda! the owners of this beautiful hotel did an amazing job in building this serene hide away.

the next days where filled with appointments with florists, technical companies, bus service agencies etc … and the most important task, finding the perfect beach for friday nights rehearsal dinner. i learned to be patient these days, because italian clocks tick differently

sardinian beaches are marvelous, rough, stunning nature, long stretches of sandy beaches, but no kiosks, no bars, no toilets, basically no amenities for a wedding reception. it was quite frustrating and i wasn’t sure how to solve the problem. finally the GM of petra segreta mentioned a venue that was a 30 minutes drive away. finally we had a friday evening venue Oasi Beach Marana. at this point all was set and done and only the details needed to be agreed on.

The countdown was on and finally on May 8th, i once again boarded the plane heading for sardinia! the local vendors where briefed, prepared and ready to go, the only problem we had where the flowers! according to sardinian prices we should have paid a a VW Golf worth for flowers, of course we didn’t and due to lack of time and lack of florists we decided to import the flowers. So early morning on May 10th a small van, loaded with tons of hydrangeas, roses and peonies left vienna for a journey through the 30 degree hell of a ferry to finally reach paradise early friday morning.

trying to arrange a civil ceremony in italy is as confusing and amusing as watching “don camillo & peppone”. we had planned an intimate civil ceremony just with the witnesses and family and closest friends, but when i saw the building it was clear that we weren’t able to have any guests participate in the civil ceremony. it was just too odd. welcome to the commune de san pantaleo, hospital, police station and city hall all in one!

so the couple said YES with their civil servant Luciano who was wearing blue jeans, chucks and a white etro shirt and was as amused as we were about the happening.

Friday’s reception dinner was the first official gathering for the bride, the groom and their 116 guests. the evening started off beautifully at the beach with a marvelous sun set, italian appetizers, and some aperol spritz. claire morgan our fabulous wedding photographer perfectly caught the beauty of this moment with her lens. we are all desperately waiting to see her remarkable work soon. in the meantime enjoy a sneak preview of fridays pictures right here …..

Aelos, the god of the winds, sent the couple his regards by bringing us a mistral. the wind almost blew us off the island and made the fire show at the beach basically impossible, followed by a complete shut down of the stereo system. well, what can i say, these are the troubles of a wedding planner and at this point i have to rest aside my craving for perfection and let nature do what it has to do. Carpe Diem …

After a short night the big day finally arrived, the mistral was still blowing, so last minute changes had to be determined. the persian ceremony had to be relocated, the after dinner dancing had to be removed from the pool area to an indoor place. this is when nature intervenes and we have to work with plan B. the whole day was filled with preparing flower arrangements, setting up chairs, tents, music systems and praying for the wind to finally stop. by 5pm everything was set and ready only the wind was still blowing. however this did not do any harm to the beautiful and romantic ceremony which took place at 7pm overlooking the emerald coast with the sunset as a back drop. never shall i forget the vows and promisses given by the bride and her groom and the lovely voice of the brides cousin singing Kci & Jojo’s “All my life” . stunning is all i can say!

after the outdoor ceremony guests gathered inside to attend the traditional persian wedding ceremony which was held by the brides uncle. i always believe these old traditions and heritages have to be present at multicultural weddings, they represent the core of both worlds and invite the wedding attendees to dive into the cultures of the couple and their families.

the persian wedding ceremony is called “aghd” and this beautiful arrangement is called “Sofreh Aghd”

Typically for a persian wedding we were about 90 minutes behind schedule … what else … despite this fact the rest of the evening went pretty well, dinner was good, music was great thanks to DJ Ramin, the dancefloor was packed and even the shuttle service seemed to work properly, overall everybody was happy. it is then in the early morning hours when i finally start feeling a relieve and am able to relax, sit back and recap on the day, and at this point i always find myself thinking, that organizing weddings is a hell of a job, much more tiring and challenging than any other event, nevertheless it is a happy and joyful job which at the end rewards you with many smiles and loads of love.

to be continued soon …..

I always hoped that Passiflora “Marijke” would be beautiful, but what I saw this morning in the greenhouse was utterly gobsmacking beautiful! 10cm sheer beauty!

Despite travel plans to the States in August, I can’t stop dreaming about Europe .

M xx .