Walking through the small, lonely mountaintop village of Trevejo, you’ll often find yourself alone with the sheep and goats that roam among the ancient stone houses. Perched atop the mountain, the Templar castle of Trevejo surveys the Sierra de Gata along the Portuguese border. Built on the ruins of an Arabic fortress, this 15th-century castle…
In Bosra at a crossroads in the desert just an hour and half south of Damascus, the Roman world intersects the Arabic in an ancient theater turned fortress. You can imagine watching a classical play while a battle rages beyond the massive walls that were built around the free-standing amphitheater. Every summer international concerts are…
Call it hookah, sheesha, round these parts qaylan, but this is the way to meet and greet in Isfahan (Esfahan). Just above the entrance to the bazaar, climb up the incredibly steep stairs to the Qeysaieh Tea Shop. From this open air teahouse enjoy some orange flavored tobacco and get a magnificent view of the…
Up here the mythically infamous Tehrani smog thins out just enough to get an idea of how massive this city really is. Clear cool water rushes out of the mountain backdrop, down culverts lined with enormous green trees that would seem unimaginable just a few miles south. In fact this is a place where myths…
The only thing bizarre about Kashan’s bazaar is that it isn’t overflowing with tourists. The adobe beauty of this covered market screams out for travelers, but in reality ends up calling the locals to do their daily business. Cooling mudbrick domes filter in shaped beams of light, illuminating everything from carpet wool to dates. Laid-back…
Writing in the local paper. Local issues with a global take. I never translate literally and the editor trims at will to make it fit. Here’s my version, then theirs. No matter how long I live in Spain, there are words that I think I will never completely understand. When I say this, I…
Writing in the local paper. Local issues with a global take. I never translate literally and the editor trims at will to make it fit. Here’s my version, then theirs. I spent some time in Libya before the fall of the Ghadaffi regime. Among the many almost surreal aspects of the Green Republic, one of…
Writing in the local paper. Local issues with a global take. I never translate literally and the editor trims at will to make it fit. Here’s my version, then theirs. It seems like the mighty New York Times can never quite get it right when writing about this country. Many paella-moons ago I remember a…
The Crusaders might have had a more difficult time getting here and the bus is surely faster than Freya Starke‘s donkey, but the windy trip into the ancient realm of the mythical Hashshashin is still a modern day adventure. Deep in the Alborz mountains an 11th-century sect hounded the invading Crusaders with fierce warriors stoned out of…
Writing in the local paper. Local issues with a global take. I never translate literally and the editor trims at will to make it fit. Here’s my version, then theirs. I’ve come to know a fair number of saints, both dead and alive, since I moved out here to one of the last stops before…