Istanbul stands in a unique geographic position, straddling two continents with one foot in Asia and one foot in Europe. The city is huge and we only have a few days here so we're intending to explore just a small part of it. Our plane arrives at night and we've made it easy by pre-arranging a shuttle from the airport to our accommodation. From the shuttle it seems there is much less litter around than on the last leg of our trip. Its colder here than we expected with people on the streets dressed in warm jackets. The skyline is unusual, punctuated by domes and minarets of many mosques. We speed past an ancient wall, a bustling fish market and glimpse narrow cobbled streets with welcoming shops and restaurants strung with festive lighting, all providing a ... read more

The road twists and turns as the bus takes us up into the High Atlas mountains on the impressive Tizi-n-Tichka route to Ouarzazate (how do you like those z's?) The landscapes are varied and dramatic with high mountain passes, big rocky outcrops and switchback roads. Sprinkled along the roadside are small shops and stalls selling local fossils and geodes, ceramic pots and plates. It looks very dry but surprisingly we get heavy rain showers as we go through the pass, turning the rivers red with the local mud. On the other side we are into the pre-Sahara, an apparent wasteland of rock and scrub but we spot cultivation lines in numerous places. This area is full of kasbahs and ksours, many used as sets in well-known movies. The Moroccan King is visiting Ouarzazate this week, so ... read more

Its another beautiful fine day and we're going to explore the source of Portugal's famous port wine, the Douro Valley. On the way we are charmed by the town of Amarante, locals flowing out of the church as we enter the square. Its an idyllic spot with a sunny cafe, the river and old stone bridge, and the old church. Keith is happy to soak up the square's atmosphere, sitting near an accordian player while we explore the church. Pulling aside the thick red curtain we discover yet another delightful church interior, and in the adjoining courtyard a well-worn row of confessionals. I briefly consider taking the opportunity, but unfortunately the dimensions were not designed for wee frogs. We follow the Douro River up the valley. The steep hills have been extensively terraced to provide footholds ... read more

The surf is flat, and we're driving almost the entire length of Portugal today to stay with friends in Porto and explore some of the North. We want to take the fastest route, so we enter our destination into the GPS Jose has lent us. After the car, this has got to be our most valuable asset on this trip. Once we manage to switch it to English instead of Portuguese there is no looking back. The calm voice of Simon leads us along country roads and motorways, talks us through thousands of intersections, spaghetti junctions and labyrinths of steep narrow cobbled one way streets in cities and villages. If we take a wrong turn he doesn't shout or swear, he simply adjusts the route plan in an instant and calmly states the next directions. We ... read more

Lisbon greets us by putting on a thunderstorm with driving rain. Tessa's Portuguese friend Jose is at the airport and its great to meet him. They haven't seen each other for 20 years. He is very generous and helps us with a car and a guide to Portugal and a friend's place to stay. It makes such a difference to have a local friend to help us. Its exciting following Jose's car with Tessa at the wheel of ours. She's sitting on the wrong side of the car, she's driving on the wrong side of the road and its rush hour in Lisbon in the pouring rain. No worries! We stop at Belem and are treated to an impressive display of drumming, marvel at the beautiful old Jeronimos Monastry and try scrumptious famous Belem pastries. And ... read more