la grande mina

I wasn’t even planning on going to Portugal. I thought Spain would be an option since Toulouse is only one hour away by train to Barcelona. How did this decision come about? I was Skyping with a friend I’d met while travelling in Peru and he mentioned how easy Easyjet is. So after our chat I picked some dates and just searched for somewhere to go that I’d never been. Portugal was the place. Greece was another option but with all of the demonstrations I thought I shouldn’t really go asking for trouble since so many places I’d been to this year were the centre of financial, natural or social upheaval. So to Lisbon it was. What a lovely surprise it was! It was hot and sunny unlike France had been for most of the spring ... read more

I travelled from Toulouse which is known as the Pink City to another city known as the same for its pink coloured brick, Marrakech. Arriving in Marrakech was like a breath of fresh air, well actually it was 38C that day, but nevertheless, the hustle and bustle, the dust, and the sunshine was all an awakening of the senses. I could not wait to sit at the now familiar Solaris Café on Avenue Mohamed V with a Berber Whiskey (mint tea) and watch life go by. It is actually the place where I watched a Euro Cup game between Italy and Germany; I being one out three women in the whole café, and to my great surprise and relief the majority of men watching all cheered when Italy scored. Initially, I headed out on a 9 ... read more

As the monsoon rains arrived with fervor, I too arrived in the laid back city of Chiang Mai. This city, Thailand’s second city has a very different vibe than Bangkok. Of course, it is striving like Bangkok to become more modern, more hip, more western but it still has a laid back feel to it. Maybe because its backdrop is the surrounding mystical mountains, the south part of the great Himalyahn mountain, that embrace this moated old city which contains hundreds of sacred temples, with chedi and gabled rooftops that soar skyward. Chiang Mai and the Northern provinces history and culture are influenced by the Shan state of present-day Myanmar, neighbouring parts of Laos and even the southern mountains of China. Also prevalent is the Thai-Muslim community; a remnant from the days when Chiang Mai was ... read more

Well, if you’ve been keeping up, this is my second time in Bangkok on this trip. I arrived during the New Year’s Eve – water celebrations the first time and am now back to a “normal” Bangkok except for the exceptionally hot and humid weather. Yes, I got back just in time for a heat wave!! I don’t know what it is about this city but I feel at home. I guess since I’d already spent a week here five years ago and more or less know my way around I used this as a getting back into the “western world” kind of stop. What does that mean? Well, I got my hair washed, cut and blow dried, had a pedicure, a manicure, a Thai massage (3 actually), a full leg wax and I mailed all ... read more

The old Burmese capital, Mandalay is where the last king of Myanmar, Thibaw, held court, before the British exiled him to India in 1885. Our stay here was once again a beautiful array of temples, pagodas and monasteries. We visited the Shwenandaw Kyaung/Golden Palace Monastery a fine teak monastery temple with intricate wood panels and Kyauktawgyi Paya, a 19thcentury temple. At the heart of this temple is a 900 tonne Buddha that is carved from a single piece of marble. It apparently took 10 000 men 13 days to transport it from a canal to its present location for the dedication in 1865 by King Mindon. The most important Buddhist Temple in Mandalay is the Mahamuni Paya an enormous complex which is home to a 13ft high seated Buddha believed to be 2 000 years old. ... read more