by Valerie | Jun 2, 2014 | art, Italy, museums, people
We travelled north towards the Lake of Bolsena, the largest volcanic lake in Europe and the town where the miracle of Corpus Christi took place in 1263. Bolsena is on the Roman Via Cassia, often called Via Francigena (the road of the Franks) or Via Romea, the route... by Valerie | Apr 20, 2014 | art, General interest, history, museums, people, theatre, travel
We couldn’t complain that on our last day in Jordan we experienced a sand and rain storm. In these strange and ancient lands, stony plains spread out east of Amman, yet by the Dead Sea, at Wadi Rum and Petra there were rocky mountains and hills, all of... by Valerie | Apr 3, 2014 | art, General interest, history, museums, people, travel
In the afternoon some of us were offered the chance to return to Petra on our own but with the same ticket (£55). We walked downhill, past a few olive groves and many more temple-tombs high in the rock face, some with weather-beaten reliefs, probably angel figures... by Valerie | Mar 27, 2014 | art, General interest, history, museums, people, theatre, travel
I keep on thinking of these tombs as temples – to the Afterworld. Innumerable, all carved into the soft sandstone striated with different hues, or sandy as one expects with sandstone, or the rose-red stone Petra is famous for. The variety never ended. Variety in the... by Valerie | Mar 25, 2014 | art, General interest, history, museums, people
Tell your friends that you are going to Jordan, and they’ll respond, ‘Petra!’ either with gleeful satisfaction or longing. So would it match up to expectation? Our guide was fully aware of this. He explained that we would start at 8.30, not at 8 as on our programme....
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