In southern Indonesia’s Torajan villages, traditional weaving and wood carving compete for tourists’ attention.
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Pick Your Souvenir
Tag: tourism
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Navels Of The World
This is no ordinary stone. For the Ancient Greeks, the omphalos represented the navel of the world, determined by Zeus when he sent his two eagles across the world to meet at its center. The eagles may have gotten lost along the way, as there are several such stones around the Mediterranean Sea, Delphi merely […]
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Each To Their Own Mayonnaise
These garlic garlands, in southeastern France’s Provence region, may have been destined for a batch of aioli: a local kind of mayonnaise that also includes olive oil and sometimes egg yolks, and a squeeze of lemon juice.
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French Prestige
There wasn’t much to see in this remote and destitute Bulgarian village. And then, around the corner, there was this huge advertisement for the local communist party, in Bulgarian and … French. This defied logic in a town where not a soul seemed to speak French.
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Polychrome Religion
Children were playing next to a man painting a wood panel for one of the countless Hindu festivals in Kathmandu, Nepal.
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Of All Places
Between Mexico and Guatemala lies the small, lesser known Belize, the only country in Central America whose official language is English. The former colony, once called “British Honduras,” was granted full independence only eight years before we visited.
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All Unpaved Roads
Visiting Sarajevo 43 years ago was virtually a feat in itself because the roads leading to what was then part of the socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia were mostly unpaved, and there were very few hotels to welcome tourists. But the city was nice and quiet, and kept its distinct Ottoman charm.
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The Ladies Of Sigiriya
Of the hundreds of frescoes that once decorated the Sigiriya rock“s western surface, only 19 remain. The exquisitely delicate paintings, in vibrant colors, are said to depict ladies of the king’s harem.
Tourism feeds a construction and real estate boom in the historical town of Cartagena de Indias. But the shadows of this former slave port hide a huge gap between rich and poor.
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Dormant Atlantis
The Greek island of Santorini, in the southern Aegean Sea, is one big active volcano. And though it’s dormant, there’s always the risk of an eruption that could destroy the beautiful whitewashed houses as one did some 3,600 years ago.
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Lobby Folklore
In the lobby of a hotel on the shores of the Black Sea, a band was playing what we in France call de la musique tzigane. This Gypsy-style music is recognizable, among other things, by the characteristic way of playing the violin — an instrument I myself tried my hand at when I was younger, […]
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Incan Perspective
The sturdy dry-stone walls of the Incan site have been standing there since the 13th century. And they still look good on a group picture.
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Leaning Toward Hackneyed
Taken at a time when this optical illusion was still somewhat original …
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Rise And Flow
A trip on the Volga river — the longest in Europe — is like floating down the stream of history. The magnificently decrepit churches along the way gave us a glimpse of the many layers of the Russian nation, just 10 years after the fall of the Soviet Union, and one year after the arrival […]
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Almost There
Estaing in southern France is one of the most picturesque villages in the country. Typiquement français. It’s a favorite stop among Christian pilgrims on their way to Santiago de Compostela — still some 700 miles away in northern Spain.
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Just One Foot
Four shoeshiners for one foot. That’s how fierce competition was in Turkey, at a time when tourist feet were not as plentiful as today.
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Victims Of Communism
There are several statues, monuments and informal crosses thoughout Prague that commemorate the death of 21-year-old Jan Palach and 19-year-old Jan Zajíc. The two students set themselves on fire in 1969 to protest the end of the Prague Spring, brought on by the invasion of Czechoslovakia by Soviet-led armies.
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Stone Giant In Sun Door
At equinoxes, the sun shines on the Pre-Columbian Ponce monolith through the Kalasasaya main door. In what is today western Bolivia, the effect no doubt left quite an impression on inhabitants of the Tiwanaku settlement near Lake Titicaca, then on Spanish conquistadors — then on French tourists.
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The Remnants
Slowly, the sands of time eat away at the concrete bunkers on Utah and Omaha beaches. The half-buried structures still bear witness to the German efforts to repel the Normandy landings.
Either this is a very original place to store a lifebuoy, or sculptors on the shores of Hungary’s Lake Balaton — the largest lake in central Europe — have a peculiar sense of humor.
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Commandos With A View
The Commando Memorial in the Highlands of Scotland is dedicated to the memory of the British Commandos who died in World War II. Through the fog — one of our rare tastes of the trademark Scottish weather — the three iconic soldiers are looking south towards Ben Nevis, the highest mountain in the United Kingdom.
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Let Off Steam
Admiring the New Orleans skyline from a distance while listening to a jazz band … Both myself and my grandson were lucky enough to enjoy a cruise down the Mississippi on the steamboat Natchez — although 23 years apart.
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Helpful Home Erosion
Millions of years of erosion shaped the fairy chimneys — also called tent rocks, hoodoos, earth pyramids — of Cappadocia. All that man needed was a bit of carving and digging to make himself at home in these troglodyte dwellings.
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Camel Trophy
Driving through Algeria and Tunisia 45 years ago wasn’t actually so rough: For our European postérieurs, the seats of our 404 Peugeot were undeniably more comfortable than the saddle of this camel.
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Bahia Bliss
Salvador is nicknamed “Brazil’s capital of happiness.” I wonder why …
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Discount Communism
In 1995, Chairman Mao was no longer such a hot commodity: If you bought one bust of the communist leader at this Beijing market, you got one free.
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Unmistakably Muscovite
The nine gilded onion domes of the Annunciation Cathedral are one of the inimitable features of Moscow“s Cathedral Square, the central square of the Kremlin.
I’ve never gone to a country to lie on the beach, but I am happy to bring my camera along to capture a seascape or two.
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Pilgrim Pose
Going to Lourdes as a tourist, not as a devotee, you come across a diverse bunch: the ailing believers looking for a cure, the admirable volunteers taking care of them, the peddlers cashing in on people’s faith. When I went there 45 years ago, I took this shot of pilgrims waiting for a group photograph […]
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A Different Kind Of Visa
Travelling on organized tours doesn’t necessarily mean being on auto pilot. When we went to Guatemala, our local guide suggested that, for a bit extra cash, we could take a detour and visit the Mayan site of Copán. Copán is in Honduras. We had no visas. So our guide grabbed two bottles of rum — […]
I’ve always thought that the best aspect of religion was art — be it music, architecture or painting. Enough to inspire stubborn unbelievers like me.
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Time Of The Seasoning
See those red garlands adorning this house on the shore of Lake Balaton? They’re chili peppers, from which Hungarians extract paprika they use to season stews and soups, like the famous goulash.
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Swiss Directions
To reach the small old town of Olten: turn left after the train station, walk alongside the Aare river until you get to a 19th-century wooden bridge, take a picture.
When it’s a celebration day on the Indonesian island of Bali, you come across a different procession every five minutes or so — each more colorful than the last.
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That’s Entertainment
Back when the Jordanian city of Jerash was known to the Romans as Gerasa, the large South Theater was sometimes used for naumachia. Naumachia is similar to gladiator combat, just that you need to fill the theater with water and add life-size reproductions of warships. The stage was dry by the time we got there, […]
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Nature Calls
There’s a waterfall on the French island of Réunion that flows directly from the mountainside onto the road. Hence its, well, original name. And it looks like this tourist took it quite literally.
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The Berlin Gate
Until the Berlin Wall was built, just six years before I took this picture, people could walk freely under the Brandenburg Gate. It would be 22 years before Berliners and tourists were able to get closer to the triumphal arch again.
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Fields Of Cones
Christmas decorations? Firelighters? I have no idea why anyone would want to dry that many pine cones …
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Klassische Musik
I took this photo of the Vienna State Opera only seven years after it was reopened, having been badly damaged by a U.S. bombing raid toward the end of World War II. Still, Austria’s singular standing in the world of classical music was as strong as ever back then, with genius conductor Herbert von Karajan […]
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The Groom Wore Red
Weddings in Canada’s New Brunswick province get really colorful when the groom is a “mountie,” a member of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police.