Too Square to be Hip
A narcissist's guide to travel and culture
One of the pretties town in Europe, Český Krumlov is notoriously full of tourists during the summer months and almost empty in the spring and winter. I visited the city on an empty spring day and although I brought material study on the train I only studies ever so marginally. I was with my good …
Ninety Nine Bottles of Beer on the Wall Traditional North American Counting Song The Holy grail of beer destinations, Pilsen (Plzeň) is a town like no other! It is said that had pattons men not stopped here to drink, they would have liberated the city of Prague before the Red Army. Yet the legendary beer …
Known for the sublime (if not a little morbid) Sedlec Ossuary, Kutná Hora is more than a pile of bones – it was one of ancient Bohemia’s great urban center. A silver mining town, Kutná Hora was often lusted after by conquerors and kings, today displaying that heritage proudly for all to see. Come see …
A Quick Stop at Fort Montgomery Crossing over near Plattburg, from Canada into Vermont, I stopped off on the lake for a view of the magnificent ruin of Fort Montgomery a 1844 structure guarding the Canada-US border, now but a rapidly decaying hull, a gentle reminder of the long lost importance of this once strategic …
The spiritual and technological successor to Merrickville, Smith Falls took over from where the former left off. Whereas Merrickville was powered by water, Smith Falls took its place as Eastern Ontario’s leading industrial center by harnessing a new technology, one that would revolutionize life in Canada. I am talking about railroads of course! What to …
One of the great beer centers in the Czech Republic, along with the legendary city of Pilsen, České Budějovice is home to the original Budweiser, the Budweiser Budvar. Due to a vicious and nefarious series lawsuit by Budweiser’s parent company InBev this legendary beer is now marketed as Czechvar in North America. For comparison the …
Located on a barren plateau in the High Atlas Mountains, Ouarzazate is more akin to desert then mountain. Yet in that desolate land, life persists… even thrives in some ways. Over the 20th century this region of Morocco was a hub for the film industry and as the 21st dawned the region began to appear …
Of All The Gin Joints In All The Towns In All The World, She Walks Into Mine. Casablanca (1942) A shimmering white city emerging from the barren land of the Atlantic’s western Sahara coastline… is it a mirage? No it is not! Casablanca, once called a folly, still stands against all odds and remains the …
Am I in Granada or Rabat? Ok… that may a bit of an exaggeration but for those quickly scanning the city they will be pleasantly surprised at the vast amount of Moorish architecture, including stunning gardens. This is due to the fact that the city was founded by the Almohads, the ruling Moorish dynasty of …
Welcome to the Credit Valley, a large inland watershed following the Credit River down 90 kilometers until it spills out into Lake Ontario at Port Credit. The region is currently managed by the Credit Valley Conservation Authority and in this post we will be examining four of its conservation area: Limehouse, Belfountain, Cheltenham Badlands and …
