Featured Destination
Bhutan
Bhutan: A Sharp Surge in Gross National Happiness
Satiated by Kathmandu’s crowds, smells and chaos, I board the Druk Air flight – the only airline with service to Bhutan, with a sigh of relief. We have been advised to get a seat on the left side of the plane, as to be able to glimpse Everest.
But the constant peering during the hour-long flight is fruitless – all I can see is clouds. Then the pilot announces our imminent descent and, like a scene in a Monty Python film, warns the passengers to stay calm, for no apparent reason. A few minutes of slight panicking later, it is clear why – the clouds remain above us and the plane drops suddenly, verging around the surrounding mountains at such proximity that its wings seem like they will scratch the slopes.
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Epicure
Turkey
Sherbet or Sorbet? An East-West Beverage Tradition
Sherbet and sorbet are a pronounced example of the contemporary gastronomic approach to the “Eastern-Western” synthesis. Full Story
News
Balkans
Tourism in Serbia, Bosnia and Croatia Not for the Faint-Hearted
31 August 2010 | Some of the countries of the former Yugoslavia are trying hard to develop tourism, sometimes in spite of – or along with, traces of the recent wars that shook in Serbia, Croatia, Bosnia and Kosovo in the 1990s.
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Serbia's Arts Festivals Have Lost Their Way
Bulgaria
Bulgaria Becomes British Tourists’ Most Preferred Summer Destination
Routes Less Travelled
Romania
Romania’s Haţeg Land: Shades of Blue
On a quest to find Romania’s oldest church, Sorin-Alexandru Cristescu of www.incogniterra.org browses the region around Haţeg Town in Transylvania, central Romania. He discovers old, older and even older churches, and realises that he is traveling against time. Eventually he finds the most ancient temple in the midst of some concrete constructions from socialist times. His four-days journey is dominated by colours: the faded pastels of the landscapes that linger in the medieval frescos of the churches. Full Story
Greece
Mount Parnassus in Greece Beckons Off-the-Beaten-Track Travellers
Romania
Bukovina: Romania's Centre of Spirituality
Curiosity Chest
Bhutan
A Prayer Carried by the Winds
All over Bhutan – from the cities, by the roads and in villages, one can see colourful pieces of fabric, imprinted with Buddhist images and texts, blowing in the wind. These are prayer flags, unique to the Himalayan branch of Buddhism. The idea behind them is that when the wind blows, it picks up and carries the imprinted prayers to the skies, “for the benefit of all sentient beings."
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Hidden Sofia
Bulgaria
Sklada: The Space that Stores and Showcases Contemporary Design
Its short manifesto, called “The diary of a Sofia neo-nihilist,” reads: “In reference to Sofia, nobody can claim anymore that it is a place of underdeveloped primates isolated from the world. Sklada turned all that around…” Full Story
Bulgaria
Before and After: A Tango Milonga in the Midst of Sofia
Bulgaria
Vlaykova: Sofia’s Old School Cinema
Hidden Bulgaria
Bulgaria
Julian Perry's Walks in Bulgaria's National Parks
Julian Perry, author of Walking in Bulgaria’s National Parks, describes three of his most loved routes through the Bulgarian mountains for the readers of BalkanTravellers.com. His book was published by Cicerone press last month. Full Story
Bulgaria
From Sofia to the Village of Lakatnik in an Old Locomotive
Bulgaria
Go Green in Bulgaria: 23 Eco-Hotels and Guest Houses to Choose From
Balkan Coasts & Mountains
Biking Along the Adriatic Coast
Croatia
A group of four self-proclaimed ‘Yugo-nostalgics’ ride their bikes from Trieste through Croatia to Ulcinj in Montenegro in 12 days, covering approximately 1,200 kilometres. Full Story
Macedonia: Nearly 50 Years Later, Lake Ohrid Overflows Again
Ararat: The Mountain Where Noah’s Journey Ended
Balkan Towns
Novi Sad, Serbia: City of Culture
Serbia
Novi Sad offers some provincial charm, a relaxed atmosphere, lively bars and restaurants and some cultural highlights. Full Story
Turkey: Stroll Along Istanbul’s Theodosian Walls
An Incomparable Inertia: Skopje to Saloniki by Rail
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Photogalleries
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A Perfect Shot
In Homo Urbanus Europeanus, exhibited May 9-24 in front of the National Theatre in Sofia, Jean-Marc Caracci presents his photographs of people in the urban environment of European capitals.
RED&WHITE SOFIA. On the 1st of March Bulgarians say goodbye to the winter. They buy each other red&white threads to carry around until they see a stork and spring can begin. Photography by Lode Desmet
BULGARIA D'OR: The Bulgarian countryside, patinated with the noble golden dust of the autumn. Photographs by Lode Desmet
360 degrees Bulgaria, an exhibition by photographer Alexandar Ivanov, is on display at the Sea Garden in Varna until August 28. It will be shown at Plovdiv’s Central Square from Sept 5.
The exhibition Photographs of a Trip Through Bulgaria by Hungarian photographer András Balla can be seen in Sofia's Hungarian Cultural Institute, at Aksakov 16 Street, until August 22
Instant Spring in Sofia | Photographs by Lode Desmet
Off-the-season Beauty of Bulgaria's Black Sea Coast | Photographs by Adelina Iliev
Bulgaria's Northern Black Sea Coast
Photographs by Albena Shkodrova
excellent smugs