Category Archives: Travel

Strangers in the Park

Hier geht es zur deutschen Fassung dieser Geschichte. I had two days left in Boston before returning to Germany, and I didn’t know anybody in the city. The year was 2009 and, as far as I knew, the internet hadn’t … Continue reading →

Posted in Austria, Bolivia, Life, Love, Photography, Romania, Serbia, Travel, USA | Tagged , , , , , | 23 Comments

Not quite a Thousand Kilometers, but a Good Start

Den deutschsprachigen Lesern empfehle ich die deutsche Originalfassung. I have hitched rides a few times already, but merely short distances. Usually on the way back from hiking in the mountains when I didn’t feel like stumbling through the night any … Continue reading →

Posted in Belgium, Germany, Travel | Tagged , , , , , , , | 19 Comments

Conversion in Jerusalem

Um diesen Artikel auf Deutsch zu lesen, klickt einfach hier. Just as I leave the courtyard in front of the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem, walking through a small gate, there are two Muslim men waiting. One of … Continue reading →

Posted in Islam, Israel, Photography, Religion, Travel | Tagged , | 14 Comments

Flowery Warnings on the Flower Islands

Diesen Artikel gibt es natürlich auch auf Deutsch. Einfach hier klicken. The Azores are also known as the Flower Islands, probably because belladonna lilies, bougainvillea, hydrangea, crane flowers, agapanthus, goldenrods and hibiscus are everywhere. But the language is at least as … Continue reading →

Posted in Azores, Language, Portugal, Travel | Tagged , , , | 5 Comments

Pico without Pico, but with Corona

Diesen Artikel gibt es natürlich auch auf Deutsch. Einfach hier klicken. Everyone coming to the island of Pico wants to climb Mount Pico. Of course. It’s the highest mountain on the island. The highest peak of the Azores, even. Oh, … Continue reading →

Posted in Azores, Photography, Portugal, Religion, Travel | Tagged , , , , | 9 Comments

Pico Preview

After watching me hitchhike across the whole island, reading about a truly funny encounter which didn’t seem funny at the time, and not being sure what to make of my observations about tourism on the Azores and elsewhere, you have … Continue reading →

Posted in Azores, Photography, Portugal, Travel | Tagged , | 1 Comment

The Girl with the Book

Lisbon, in the garden of Palácio Fronteira, on a late afternoon. Under a canopy of wisteria, there is a girl reading a book. It is both a beautiful and a soothing sight. How nice that people find leisure to escape … Continue reading →

Posted in Books, Love, Photography, Portugal, Travel | Tagged , | 10 Comments

What does the Corona Virus mean for Tourism?

It’s no surprise that a rapidly spreading and rather lethal virus wouldn’t be conducive to tourism. Not enough people were considering the option of using travel as a way to get to safety. Too many believe – often erroneously – … Continue reading →

Posted in Azores, Economics, Portugal, Travel | Tagged , , | 16 Comments

Hitchhiking in the Time of Corona

Last week, when the Corona crisis really hit, I was on the island of Pico, part of the Azores, in the middle of the Atlantic. There are only two bus routes, each going twice a day, which was not enough. … Continue reading →

Posted in Azores, Portugal, Travel, Video Blog | Tagged , , | 28 Comments

A Little Loan

Zur deutschen Fassung dieser Geschichte. After an exhausting, but sunny day on Pico, the way back to the quarantine cloister leads past a bowling bar. In front of it, a scruffy and shady-looking man approaches me, all agitated, asking for … Continue reading →

Posted in Azores, Economics, Portugal, Travel | Tagged , | 16 Comments