Valetta

Categories: Europe · Malta · TravelTags: · · ·

Europe’s first planned city built in the 17th century, Valetta is UNESCO World Heritage listed because of it high concentration of historic monuments. Valetta is Malta‘s capital built by the Knights of St. John on a peninsula that stretches only 1 km by 600 m. Decreed by its founder that it should be “a city built by gentlemen for gentlemen”, Valetta retains its 16th century elegance and is designated as European Capital of Culture for 2018 (and that is one of the reasons I am here). St. John’s Co-Cathedral is one of the most magnificent baroque and ornate churches in the…

Malta

Categories: Architecture · Europe · Malta · TravelTags: · · 1 Comment

Malta is an archipelago in the central Mediterranean between Sicily and North Africa. With its 7,000 year history, Malta has a greater density of historic sights than any other country. It boasts of unique prehistoric temples, Roman catacombs, medieval towns and extraordinary architectural legacy of the Knights of St. John (the Knights of Malta). Mdina is a fortified city that used to be the capital of Malta throughout the Middle Ages, until the arrival of the Order of St. John in 1530.  (And for GoT fans, the city was the location shoot for King’s Landing).

Cusco

Categories: Cusco · Peru · TravelTags: ·

Cusco is the storied capital of the Inca Empire and gateway to the imperial city of Machu Pichu. Stately and historic with stone streets and building foundations laid more than five centuries ago, Cusco sits at an altitude of 3,400 m (11,000 feet) above sea level. Cusco is a blend of pre-Columbian and colonial history and mestizo culture. Meaning “navel of the world” in Quechua, this was the political, military and cultural centre of the Inca empire.

Machu Pichu

Categories: Architecture · Machu Pichu · Peru · TravelTags: · · 2 Comments

The fabled “Lost City of the Incas“, Machu Pichu is South America’s greatest attraction and lives up to its reputation as one of the most spectacular sites in the world — named a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1983 and declared one of the “Seven Wonders of the World”. The Incas hid Machu Pichu so high in the clouds (2,400 m above sea level) that it escaped destruction by the Spaniards, who never found it. Located 120 kms NW of Cusco, Machu Pichu was rediscovered in 1911 by the Yale archaeologist Hiram Bingham. The ruins are nestled in the Andes…

Urubamba Valley

Categories: Peru · Travel · Urubamba ValleyTags: · · · ·

Better known as El Valle Sagrado de los Incas (the Sacred Valley of the Incas), Urubamba Valley is a stretch of small villages and ancient ruins northwest of Cusco. Stretching about 100 kms from Pisac to Ollantaytambo, the villages remain traditional with Quechua-speaking residents. The Sacred Valley, about 300 m lower than Cusco, is one of the highlights of Peru.

Lima

Categories: Art · Lima · Peru · TravelTags: · · ·

Founded in 1535 by the Spanish conquistador, the “City of Kings” became the center of power and trade of the Spanish Crown. Today, Lima has a population of more than eight million, about a third of Peru‘s total population, and the seat of the national government. Across the capital are the country’s finest museums as well as its most creative restaurants – Peruvian cuisine has been a subject of  growing international buzz for the past few years and many visitors are flocking to experience this city’s gastronomic offerings. The Museo Arqueológico Rafael Larco Herrera, founded in 1926, has the world’s…

Paris en Hiver

Categories: Art · Europe · France · Paris · TravelTags: ·

Third year in a row I have been coming to Paris in the winter, and it was a cold one this year – with some snow. Musée Jacquemart-André is set in a 19th century mansion – relatively reasonable in size but offers a lot with its magnificent art and decorative objects. The impressive collection include pieces from Tiepolo, Bellini, Botticelli, David, to Rembrandt and Frans Hals.                       Musée Rodin is one of my favourites in Paris – I call it my “happy place”! I would be well content to be…

Loire Valley

Categories: Europe · France · Loire Valley · TravelTags: · · · · · ·

Studed with fairytale châteaux and storybook villages, Loire Valley is known as the “Garden of France” and needless to say, its various vineyards. The area has become a showplace of the pleasure castles that take on different architectural styles. The Chateau of Villandry is the last of the great châteaux of the Loire built during the Renaissance of the Loire Valley. The elegance of its architecture combined with its expansive gardens make this one of the jewels of the world heritage.     Chateau D’Usse is known as the inspiration for Charles Perrault for his tale of Sleeping Beauty. This…

Fontevraud Royal Abbey

Categories: Europe · France · Loire Valley · TravelTags: · · ·

The main reason for my trip to France this year : to visit the Royal Abbey of Our Lady of Fontevraud in the Loire Valley. Formerly a monastery in the village of Fontevraud-l’Abbaye, near Chinon, it was founded in 1101 and became the center of a monastic Order. It is one of the largest surviving monastic cities from the Middle Ages, until 1792 when the last abbess was evicted following the French Revolution. A UNESCO World Heritage Site, the complex of monastic buildings was transformed into a high security prison by order of Napoleon Bonaparte housing up to 2,000 prisioners…