Tag Archives: Mountains

Potholes, bribes and a Foreign Office advice. Riding the marshutka to Yerevan.

Posted on May 29, 2016 by

It is said that Paul of Tarsus, whilst riding from Jerusalem to Damascus, was blinded by an intense light, spoke with a divine entity and, there and then, found his faith and converted to Christianity. Now, I haven’t been blinded … Continue reading →

Posted in Armenia, Caucasus, Georgia | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 14 Comments

Honey, scenic roads and wrong turns: A brief guide to driving in the Balkans

Posted on August 20, 2015 by

The road is a perfect combination of smooth tarmac, beautifully designed hairpin bends and quick straights that seem to say “Come on, get loose on that accelerator”. A bit of traffic is coming the other way – trucks, mostly, and the … Continue reading →

Posted in Balkans, Bosnia Herzegovina, Croatia | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | 7 Comments

The alpine tunnel for the afterlife.

Posted on April 21, 2015 by

It wasn’t supposed to be dug this high. The idea, originally, was for the tunnel to be at least 400 meters lower, at an easier 1000 meters of altitude, where it could’ve been used almost all year round, but that … Continue reading →

Posted in Europe, Italy, Piemonte | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 4 Comments

The world from above – An air race over the skies of Iran

Posted on February 28, 2015 by

The flight was rather uneventful, a barely half-full Qatar Airways Airbus A380 from Doha to London. Meal trays were being cleared away and I was about to decide which film would’ve been more appropriate to induce me to sleep as … Continue reading →

Posted in Asia, Dubai, Middle East, Public Transportation, The pleasure of flying, The world from above | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Seeing an old friend (four years after and 30,000 ft. from above)

Posted on November 25, 2014 by

It was the faithful companion of many a sunset in Turin for over six years. We lived always in the same place, a rather nondescript tenament in the southern Santa Rita borough, one of those neighbourhoods that had popped up … Continue reading →

Posted in Italy, Overlooked locations, Piemonte, Random memories, The pleasure of flying, The world from above | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Back to the roots: the return of agriculture in the Alps

Posted on October 19, 2014 by

“We decided to grow potatoes because potatoes were the staple that fuelled the Alps’ demographic boom”, explains Federico, a hand gesture encircling the tiny field, no longer than half a football field, stretching on front of us. With hindsight, finding … Continue reading →

Posted in All things food, Europe, Italy, Overlooked locations, Val d'Aosta | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

The world from above – Northwestern Italy

Posted on September 11, 2014 by

  Italy, as I never stop telling my colleagues, is not only made of islands, tomato sauce and tarantella, like the UK is not just made of tiny cottages, clotted cream and old ladies saying “jolly good” at every possible occasion. … Continue reading →

Posted in Europe, Italy, Lombardia, Overlooked locations, Piemonte, The pleasure of flying, The world from above, Val d'Aosta | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment