Results for "Kola+|+6+>+177"

A quelle place situez vous le "voyage" dans votre vie? Si chacun devez fixer des priorités, vous placeriez le voyage en quelle position?

Généralement le classement réputé "classique" se déroule ainsi :

Priorité n°1.vie de famille Priorité n°2.travail Priorité n°3.amis Priorité n°4.voyage...ETC

est- ce que ce classement vous parle?

Qui peut me dire la distance entre le village de Gueriz à Marrakech et la Place Djemaa El Fna?

J'irai séjourner à l'hotel Meryem et j'aimerais savoir si la distance se fait à pied jusqu'à la Place Djemaa El Fna...et si c'est sécuritaire pour 2 femmes et 2 enfants?

Connaissez vous le resto Al Fassia à Marrakech?Donnez moi svp vos commentaires.

Peut-on se balader facilement dans les médinas de Marrakech(facilité à se retrouver)? ou doit-on utiliser les services d'un guide? le cout?? si c'est le cas.

Ici le vent est roi Il commande et fait sa loi Les nuages arrivent en rang serré Les gris clair puis les gris foncé le soleil voile ses éclats et patatra quand il est l'heure de partir la pluie arrive brutale violente tourbillonnante c'est alors Que le vent s'en mêle Et s'emmêle Dans l'envol des feuilles Et dans les boucles de mes cheveux...

Dolma

Salut à tous,

Le nez dans l'Afrique, ma perception du temps s'est vue complètement bouleversée et j'ai eu le sentiment pendant mes premiers séjours que le temps passait à 1000 à l'heure. Quand je m'y suis installée, il m'a fallu une dixaine de mois pour éprouver le temps à une vitesse normale (normale pour moi en tous cas).

Quelle est votre perception du temps dans vos voyages ? Est-ce que ce que je décris vous paraît plus vrai dans certaines destinations ? Est-ce que vous avez une compréhension de ce phénomène ?

Merci de me donner vos points de vue...c'est tellement bizarre ! Bye

Bonjour à tous, Je prépare la décoration de mes toilettes sur le thème du voyage. A ce propos je souhaiterai composer des inclusions dans la résine avec des objets et autres particularités spécifiques au voyage. Exemples : Billets d'avions, petits portes clés thèmatiques du pays, billets d'entrée de grands monuments etc ... Suivant vos propositions je vous communiquerai mon adresse et vous rembourserai l'envoi du courrier. Merci d'avance à tous ceux qui participeront à cette petite collecte. @ bientôt.

Lorsque la musique fait aussi voyager... Début de la 30ème édition de Jazz in Marciac, cette année sous le signe du piano Le trio suédois E.S.T... Chick Corea... Ahmad Jamal... Roberto Fonseca... D'autres, jusqu'au 15 aout...

Que des noms qui enmènent dans les étoiles...

Lorsque les Ego... d'ici ou d'ailleurs... n'occuperont plus le devant de la scène, lorsque l'ironie sera humour et non pas sarcasmes, lorsqu'il n'y aura plus de vieilles rancœurs... plus de comptes à régler, lorsqu'on lira un message, quelque qu’il soit, avec les yeux grands ouverts (et le cœur aussi, grand ouvert... ) lorsqu'on ne sera pas blessant juste pour le plaisir de faire un bon mot, lorsqu'on saura se détourner d'un message, lorsqu'on apprendra à ne pas avoir un avis sur tout... lorsque sagesse et réflexion feront nos doigts raisonnables et patients, l'agressivité ne les précipitera plus sur le clavier... On sera juste spontanés... lorsque la candeur l'emportera sur le cynisme, lorsque.......

Alors peut être que...

C’est un après-midi brûlant, immobile. Comme pétrifiés par la canicule ambiante, les champs des Ayt Boulmane reposent dans l’attente d’heures plus fraîches qui les verront s’égayer des couleurs vives des foulards des filles, des cris et rires des enfants et des chants des laboureurs.

Chez Bassou, la sieste n’est pourtant pas de rigueur.

La théière attendait l’eau chaude. La bouilloire siffle sur le brasero. Grand-mère Aghkiya rince le thé pour en enlever l’amertume, jette la première eau. C’est pratique les sols en terre battue ! Elle remplit la théière et la pose sur le kanoun. A voir la souplesse avec laquelle la vieille femme, déjà assise en tailleur, se penche au ras du sol pour activer les braises, je me dis que l’âge ne semble pas avoir la même emprise sur les os et les articulations de ces montagnards que sur les nôtres !

Asta, qui n’était tout à l’heure qu’un tas de bois au milieu de la pièce, est monté parallèlement au mur ouvert sur la lumière. Fadma, Rabgha et la jeune Sâadiya en peaufinent l’assemblage. Une troisième femme que nous voyons pour la première fois prépare les écheveaux.

Dans la grande chambre ouverte sur la terrasse, les cinq femmes s’affairent il y a peu à l’assemblage de deux grandes barres, de perches en roseaux, de rondins lustrés par le temps et de morceaux de corde grise fabriquée avec un mélange de laine et de poils de chèvre. Un exercice collectif, comme beaucoup des tâches entreprises par les femmes, qui aboutira à un équipement omniprésent dans chaque foyer: Le métier à tisser.

Chaque foyer possède le sien sur lequel, souvent, un ouvrage est en cours qui semble captiver les femmes dès que les autres tâches ménagères leur laissent un peu de répit. Toutes connaissent l’art du tissage de haute lisse. Elles fabriquent aussi bien des sacs de bât, les tissus des burnous, des nattes en feuilles de palmier nain, des tapis noués ou tissés, ou leur propre ahendir* .

Plus de deux mois se sont écoulés depuis la tonte. Des grands-mères aux gamines, tôt initiées, toujours en ce long apprentissage de la vie qui fera d’elles, un jour prochain… Inch Allah, des « femmes capables » sans peine à trouver mari, trois générations auront contribué ensuite à la transformation de la laine brute.

Il aura d’abord fallu laver la laine primitive fournie par le troupeau après « la chienne de mai », la sécher soigneusement, la démêler, l’aérer au peigne, la carder pour apprêter les fibres à la quenouille et au filage, et enfin à la future teinture.

La moisson est ensuite arrivée, obligeant au report de ces activités plus agréables mais secondaires. Dans ces vallées l’exigence n’a de prise que sur les semis et la récolte. Il nous a donc fallu attendre la fin de l’engrangement avant d’assister à la teinture des longs écheveaux qui séchaient au soleil il y a quelques jours encore, et enfin admirer l’éclat des bleus, des verts, des rouges, jaunes ou noirs qui enlumineront les motifs du futur tapis.

Qu’importe ! Une maxime berbère ne dit-elle pas ² Qui sait patienter possède la clef du bonheur ² ?

Puis est venu l’ourdissage de la trame. Exercice sérieux accompagné de chants solennels et de formules sacrées, exécuté sans que quiconque enjambe la chaîne de fils. Un pas malheureux obligerait à tout recommencer tant les conséquences auraient pu être préjudiciables pour le futur tissage et l’indélicat … ou plutôt l’indélicate car la transformation de la laine et le thème du tissage sont exclusivement féminins et même parfois perçus, selon de vieilles croyances, comme dangereuses pour les garçons.

Par cet après-midi caniculaire, sommes-nous, Jacky et moi, d’humbles et privilégiés observateurs invités dans ce monde de superstitions féminines ou roumis incrédules leurrés par des magiciennes ? Nos voisines auraient-elles l’intention de nous jeter un quelconque sortilège ? Nous sommes entre leurs mains.

Aghkiya lave soigneusement les verres, la menthe infuse dans le thé et parfume l’atmosphère. Dans la grande chambre ouverte sur la terrasse commencent à résonner les chants et les rires. Sâadiya l’espiègle tend un bendir à Jacky.

Me voilà rassuré.

Un après midi aux Aït Boulmane,

* Vêtement sans couture tel un grand châle lourd et chaud que les femmes portent sur leurs épaules quand il fait frais ou pour sortir les soirs de fête.

bonjour,

je pars en inde au mois de septembre et j'aimerais faire un stage de meditation ou de yoga :

deja pouvez vous m'ecalirer sur la difference entre le yoga et la meditation?

et enfin quels sont les lieux les plus interressants pour effectuer ces stages?

merci a tous

Salut,

J'ai éffectué récemment une rando de 7jours le long de la falaise de biandagara (de Djiguibombo à Bamba) sans guide, armé d'une seule carte (1/200000e copie dispo aux archives IGN), et du mini topo-guide paru en février 07 dans "trekmag". Je souhaiterais mettre fin à une rumeur persistente, entretenue par certains membres de ce forum ainsi que par l'ensemble des guides locaux (qui ne font eux que défendre leur business), qui prétend que la rando en pays dogon est totalement proscrite sans l'assistance d'un guide, professionnel ou non.

Ainsi il serait périlleux de s'y aventurer "sous peine de se perdre, de profanner des lieux interdits et sacrés, de mécontenter les otoctones ou même risquer une agression (???), ..." Tout cela est absoluement ridicule puisque les dogons, qui parlent souvent un peu le francais (les jeunes se démerdant même plutôt bien), se feront un plaisir de vous accueillir royalement, ou de vous aiguiller sur le bon chemin lorsque vous doutez. Quelques portions de failles sont même balisés! Les lieux sacrés sont finalement peu nombreux, on les repère facilement le long du chemin par des signes tels que: un alignement de pierre ou une branche plantée verticalement dans le sol, qui marquent un passage interdit, tout comme l'ensemble des vestiges Tellems dont il ne faut pas s'approcher. Par contre il est éffectivement indispensable de visiter les villages accompagné, par des gamins ou de véritables guides, afin de ne pas commettre d'impairs. Quand à l'insécurité, on ne déplore à ce jour aucune agréssion de toubabs dans cette région.

Certes je ne suis peut-être pas devenu un spécialiste de la cosmogonie dogon, mais j'encourage celles et ceux qui considère la rando comme un moyen privilégié de voyager, tout comme les touristes qui optent pour la présence d'un guide à leurs coté, de ne plus hésiter à se lancer dans ce voyage extraordinaire.

alex

Salut a tous,

Apres le vietnam cette année, nous partons 1 mois en mars en sud thailande et en malaisie avec les 2 loustics de 3 et 6 ans. Nous sommes deja bien rodé pour ce qui est du matériel et de l'organisation et c'est pour les enfants que je vous consulte; Leur truc c'est l'eau et les rencontres avec d'autres enfants. Alors si vous connaissez des endroits sympas genre Guesthouses tenues par des familles avec des petits et d'autres dans les terres avec des piscines pour un budget léger alors pensez à nous !!!

Merci de votre aide

Toutes infos sur le VN sont dispos !!

Bonjours à tous

Que pensez vous de l'avenir de Nepal ? Ma plus grosse crainte est la fermeture de ce pays dans l'avenir, suite à un coup d'etat par les Maoistes !

Le Nepal est dans le "Top less" des pays les plus pauvres du monde, si on retitre les tourites, qui representaient 25 % des rentrées d'argent, ce sera la "cata" !!!!!!

A +🙂🙂

Bonjour, Je vais bientôt partir en Russie, visiter moscou entre autre. De là je voudrais ensuite rejoindre l'Ouzbékistan. J'avoue que je ne sais quel chemin prendre. (Je voyage par la route) En russie, je pensais faire : Moscou - Niznij Novgorod - Kazan' puis redescendre par la volga, Samara - Saratov - Volgograd et enfin Astrachan. De là je serais reparti pour Atyrau au Kazakhstan et j'aurais rejoins Nokïz en Ouzbékistan. Est-ce quelqu'un est déjà passé par là et sais si ça vaut les détours?? Ou alors vaut-il mieux faire plus direct : Moscou - Volgograd ? ou encore, après Kazan', faire Samara - oral (frontière Kazakh)? Je ne sais pas par où aller pour rejoindre la mer d'Aral, et rejoindre l'Ouzbékistan.

Merci d'avance pour vos lumières

Cromagnon

Bonjour,

Je n'arrive pas à localiser l'ambassade de france à Lima. Je sais que c'est sur l'av Aréquipa à San Isidro (mais elle est longue cette avenue!). Quelqu'un sait-il vers quelle autre rue latérale de l'av.Aréquipa se trouve l'ambassade? Merci!

Hi there!

I’m inviting you on a stroll through my drawings—a completely subjective, far from exhaustive, and totally personal take, since it’s based on my own sketches. I put this travel journal together after returning in late 2024, mostly using felt-tip pens and pencils, with a few collages thrown in. I worked from our personal photos.

Let’s start with the shotengai...



Our first "wow" moment came as we stepped out of the subway in Asakusa, the Tokyo neighborhood where we’d booked our hotel for our first five nights. Exhausted after our long flight, we finally arrived and took an exit that led straight into a shotengai—one of those covered shopping streets that pop up in city centers and flourished between the 1950s and 1980s.

It was an instant aesthetic shock, like a close encounter of the third kind between the modern city, a typical Asian market with its street stalls, the vintage vibe of the arcade, the sheer abundance of goods, and the bustling crowd—a mix of tourists, pilgrims (thanks to nearby Senso-ji Temple), and locals (it’s a very working-class area). In the end, it set the tone for a feeling we’d experience throughout the trip. Wherever we went, shotengai turned out to be fantastic spots for finding little restaurants, shops, or even fresh produce. Some are like real mazes, like in Kyoto, where we spent ages trying to relocate a restaurant we’d loved ;-)

In Kanazawa, the Omicho Market: And in Kyoto, Nishiki Market:

To be continued...

I left my heart’s country eight days ago and returned to my adopted one—or was it the other way around? Scotland-Morvan, Morvan-Scotland, I’m not quite sure anymore.

After a quarter without dragging my slippers around here, even though I’d loudly declared I had no interest left in this site, here I am again!

My imagination never stays fallow for long. Just enough time for my inner land to rest. It gets overgrown with fresh nettles, the kind you can pick without getting stung. Then, it’s time to till the fragrant earth and let the story grow.

I hesitated over where to set this story. Maybe the Highlands, maybe the Hebrides, maybe the Orkney Islands, maybe the Shetland Islands. All of Scotland is myth—easy to embroider. But in the end, no. I’d almost be too afraid to bare my soul.

The story will take place at home. Simple, practical.

1)

This morning, I was up well before dawn, feeling a bit grumpy, but nothing a bowl of coffee won’t fix. I love my bowl, and no one dares take it. It’s porcelain, edged with intertwined blue flowers. On the bottom, it says "Revol." The factory has existed long before the Revolution. It was my great-grandmother’s bowl. She drank roasted barley from it during the war, then her Leroux chicory.

Last year, a little guy dropped it. My bowl broke into three pieces. A black anger vibrated deep inside me. The little boy was so upset, on the verge of tears. How could I scold him!

I picked up the three pieces and took Little Boy in my arms. His hair smelled of the light, sweet sweat of toddlers. A gentle hug that healed—his budding sorrow and my anger—everything vanished, and time carried on.

Today, my bowl is even prettier. Man fixed it using the traditional kintsugi technique, except he didn’t use gold powder or lacquer but superglue, and he delicately painted the cracks with woad blue. And my bowl is even more beautiful now.

I’m lingering, I can tell—it’s just that a story wraps itself in life, and life can’t be told in the snap of a finger. Life is long. Like in architecture, you start with a rough sketch, called a "sous-cul" (the initial pencil drawing), then you make a tracing, which is the work itself, the one you later carefully roll up in a wooden tube. Life is like that: you erase, you start over, you use the nub of the pencil until it’s tiny, but you keep going—dreaming, loving.

"Living is a full-time occupation, a unique adventure. Always a surprise and a wonder, which sometimes turns into astonishment. And, from time to time, happiness."*

Alright, enough digressing—this introduction is definitely too long. Tomorrow, I’ll get to the heart of the matter. (I hate that expression; it feels like I’m cutting into someone’s skin.)

*Jean d’Ormesson

2)

Hi there, I’ve been traveling for 18 years now, at least 6 months a year, and as the years go by, I actually enjoy coming back to France more and more—a feeling I struggled with at first. I mean, we always think the grass is greener elsewhere. But in the end, I find meaning in that saying about how there’s no place like home. I still love traveling just as much, but now my trips are shorter, and I enjoy spending more time in our beautiful country, even though I don’t hesitate to criticize it. How about you? How do you handle coming back from your travels?

Hi everyone!

This theme has probably been done before... but not recently, at least 😉 Doors—open, closed, of houses, castles... even if only the threshold remains. Since I’m not home, I don’t have access to my photos right now, and regarding the rules, I’ll let you refer to one of the previous contests.

Photos can be posted until Thursday the 23rd at 11:59 PM (Paris time). Voting will take place from the 24th to the 30th of October, and the results will be announced on the 31st during the day.

See you soon! 🙂

Hey fellow travelers!

This isn’t meant to be a full-on travel journal—just a little springtime dip into the Moroccan coast (and maybe a bit more if we click).

For our third trip to this country, we set off for 8 days in early June 2025, *sure* we’d be greeted by non-stop sunshine...



...and well, that didn’t happen! The gray stuck around for a day, then two, then three (while back home in the Landes, we had gorgeous sunshine 🤦‍♂️😂).

Now, unlike us, the Morocco experts here probably already know this, but apparently, it’s pretty common—especially in spring—when the warm air from inland meets the cool ocean breeze. Locals even have to warm up with hot water bottles, can you believe it? 😄!



And of course, it had to happen now, since our plan is to follow the coast from Essaouira to Mirleft!!

Oh well, we’ll see how it goes—but luckily, this first stunning sunset made up for the weather 🌅.



See you soon to anyone who’s up for it! 😊

Prologue

This journal recounts a trip to Rajasthan that’s already over a year old and that I’ve only now found the chance to write about. The summer of 2024 marked my return to India—my tenth trip—after six long years away since my last solo wanderings in Tamil Nadu in 2018 (the journal of which is published on this site). That absence was partly (but not only) due to the long COVID and post-COVID period, which saw a complete halt and then a major slowdown in global tourism. To top it off, Voyage Forum announced its closure in an end-of-the-world atmosphere. A sad time for our favorite social activity…

A few weeks after returning from Rajasthan, I tried to motivate myself to start writing a journal to publish on a forum claiming to be VF’s successor, which I’d eventually signed up for out of desperation. But I kept hesitating and putting the project off because, for one, I no longer have the time I used to. For another, the vibe wasn’t really taking off on that forum—it was overrun with ads and not very active, contrary to what its host’s name suggested. Despite its good intentions and commendable role as a stopgap, it also turned out to be very impractical to use, especially when you don’t have much time like me. I’ll admit I’d occasionally check back on VF to see if anything was happening. But all the discussions remained frozen in time, stuck in that fateful year, 2020. Then, rumors swirled online about shady reasons behind its closure, leaving little room for hope.

And then, one fine morning, I got a message at work from Marien informing me that VF had reopened. What a huge surprise! Even though the forum’s “end” had played out in a somewhat apocalyptic atmosphere, the memories of passionate and heated discussions, the frank debates, and the useful exchanges that made this site a traveler’s goldmine and a unique hub of conviviality all came rushing back to me like a breath of fresh air. I finally saw a sign and tried to motivate myself to find the time to publish the journal of this tenth trip to India and fifth to Rajasthan. But in the end, I got bogged down in professional and family obligations and never managed to find the time to get started. That’s now fixed, though, because I had two reasons for wanting to do it: I find that looking back on a trip to tell others about it is a highly beneficial introspective exercise. Also, I thought this journal could be useful to other travelers on a few points.

Because, “do we really need yet another journal about Rajasthan?” you might rightly ask! Especially in a time when so many journals about the “Land of Kings” have been published since VF’s return, not to mention the countless stories you can already find online about this region, one of India’s most touristy. And I’d add, why go back to Rajasthan for a fifth time, where I’ve already dragged my feet more than enough—through its forts, deserts, temples, cities, villages, bumpy roads, train stations, tasty street food stalls, cheap guesthouses, and more? Where some might see just another overhyped tourist destination full of the same old *Arabian Nights* clichés, worn to a thread, that I mentioned earlier, when there’s so much else to see in India? Well, first because it’s a magnificent country I never tire of, where I started an academic study and made so many connections. It’s also packed with places where you won’t find a single tourist (right, Marie-Jo?), even in the heart of well-trodden paths and classic itineraries. And most importantly, as I said earlier, things have changed in recent years. First, after six years without traveling far, the urge to go back to India was getting stronger. But this time, no more solo trips (often) or duo adventures (sometimes)—now it’s a team of four that has to come along! And even if you can argue with that, what better place than Rajasthan to introduce India to people who’ve never seen it? To kids you want to amaze? Plus, traveling with your new little family to your favorite country isn’t the same as going solo in often spartan conditions that only affect you. It’s a different challenge, but ultimately probably much harder. So, is it really reasonable to take two kids to India, including a two-year-old baby? That’s one of the main goals of this journal (but not the only one)—to try to answer that question.

As you can tell, it’s not so much the destination but the slightly unusual setup of this trip that, in my opinion, will make this journal interesting. Despite my experience and expertise (yes, I dare say it) in India, there were plenty of questions before we finalized the plan and said, “Alright, let’s go!” The questions were flying for us parents. Is it wise to travel to India with a two-year-old? What would we do (it happened) if the kids got very sick? Would they be able to handle a road trip on Rajasthan’s bumpy, dusty roads using public transport? Could they handle the shock of such a different world—the dirt, poverty, pollution, noise (…and the smell, as they say), the spicy food, monkeys, mosquitoes, snakes, tigers, leopards, and so on? In short, all the clichés that I usually joke about suddenly became potential realities. Another concern: as a mixed Franco-African family (not me, but my partner and her oldest), wouldn’t we risk not always being well received, given what you sometimes hear about that in India? How would Indians react to seeing a mixed-race family, the ultimate taboo in a country of purity and social segregation, which would undoubtedly raise many questions for them? Of course, not everything went as expected… Because, as you know, with India—and what makes it charming for some—there are always complications: sometimes where you don’t expect them… and sometimes where you do. I’ll go into detail about that in the journal to come (not right away) and in the final review (even later). These experiences could be useful to travelers who find themselves in similar situations and have the same questions we did before embarking on such a journey. And maybe it’ll spark the curiosity of those who aren’t concerned and will read yet another Rajasthan journal, but with its own unique twists.

Despite my unchanged constraints, which mean I have little time to write this, I don’t want to rush the story, so I’ll take my time. There will probably be lulls. I hope that won’t stop people from coming to react, debate, share their impressions, or ask for information.

A travel journal—it’s been a while!

I must say, my personal situation has "changed a bit" since my last journals (my 3 kids are grown up + a divorce finalized in early 2021). So, no more long-haul family trips; now I’m focusing on multi-day hikes for my vacations. I found a hiking buddy in 2021 to join me on the Laugavegur trek in Iceland, but this year, no one was available.

That’s how the idea of a solo trek in Lapland took root—a region I’ve been dreaming about ever since I read Marie Lefevre’s 2012 journal on the topic.

Marie, who I hiked with for the first time in 2015 during my very first multi-day trek, and whom I can never thank enough for sharing her knowledge and saving me so much time.

To build my confidence for this solo trek, I hiked around Cantal in May (okay, I’m capable of spending nights alone in the middle of nowhere without being overly terrified) and camped in the Mercantour in July, where a massive storm made me realize I still had room for improvement in managing wet conditions...

After some research, I bought 2 Nylofume bags—large, ultra-lightweight ones to protect my gear in my backpack—and a set of 4 Aloksak bags in different sizes for my passport, camera, battery, etc. (and I’m so glad I did!!)

Well, I think I’m all set...

My 16/08 - Day 1 - Ritsem – Gisuris (well, almost) Wed 17/08 – Day 2 - Partly in the tent + minimal progress toward Gisuris Thu 18/08 – Day 3 - Gisuris – Laddejakha (23 km) Fri 19/08 – Day 4 – Laddejakha – Arasluokta (13 km) Sat 20/08 - Day 5 - Arasluokta – Staloluokta (12 km) Sun 21/08 – Day 6 - Staloluokta – Duottar (18 km) Mon 22/08 Day 7 - Duottar – Dareluoppal (10 km) Sammarlappa (15.3 km) Tue 23/08 - Day 8 - Sammarlappa – Tarrekaise (12 km) + halfway to Tarrekaise-Nunjes (approx. 3 km) Wed 24/08 – Day 9 – Finish Tarrekaise-Nunjes (approx. 4 km) Kvikkjokk (12.6 km) Thu 25/08 and Fri 26/08 – Around Kvikkjokk Food and gear summary

Mid-June, two Auvergnats on the starting blocks—off we go to the former Yugoslavia! We’d already explored some nooks and crannies of northern Croatia back in 2019, so we’re keeping the momentum going by planning a trip to the south of the country and then Montenegro.

On the way back, we’ll drift into Bosnia-Herzegovina just to mix things up a bit!

We’re a little unsure about what to expect in terms of tourist crowds.

Dubrovnik has a reputation for being the hardest-hit city by overtourism, and Kotor and the whole Dalmatian coast aren’t exactly empty...

Luckily, most European countries haven’t started school holidays yet, and some measures seem to have been put in place to limit the flow (like restrictions on the number of cruise ships allowed to dock at the same time).

Maybe we’ll manage to escape the promised hell?

For now, we’re slamming the doors of the Scirocco and heading off to our first stop: northern Italy!

The theme for June is: A SERIES "A series is a set of coherent images that share several common points while still being different from one another."

In 3 photos, posted simultaneously in the same message, I’d like you to tell me a little story with a few words. You’re allowed 2 series.

They can be narrative or thematic. For example: 3 shots representing 3 professions, 3 places of worship, 3 market stalls, 3 trains... the ideas are endless—whether in the same place or in different countries... or 3 images of the same place, photographed from 3 different angles, under 3 different lights... or 3 images where the predominant color is the same... Narrative and theme can, of course, overlap.

Practical details:

Participation Each VF member can submit up to 2 series, until Saturday, June 21 at 11:59 PM Paris time. Each series of 3 photos must be presented in a single message, with its number indicated (series 1, series 2).

Voting: Each VF member can vote for the 3 series they consider the best, based on their own criteria and the theme.

Voting will take place from Saturday, June 21 at midnight until Saturday, June 28 at 11:59 PM Paris time.

The selected series will be ranked in order of preference: - 1st series: 3 points - 2nd: 2 points - 3rd: 1 point

The winner is the author of the series with the most points.

Results will be published on June 29 during the day. In case of a tie, the number of first-place votes will decide. The winner will have the honor of organizing July 2025’s contest.

Photos that have won (1st, 2nd, or 3rd place) in another VF contest are not eligible for this one.

This thread is exclusively for series submitted to the contest. All discussions, comments, and other chatter should take place in this thread.

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Narrative: In Bali, I took a cooking class. We went to the market to shop with the teacher. We cleaned and prepped the ingredients to make, among other things, a lovely salad.







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Narrative and thematic: I really loved this place 30 km from Essaouira. A little souk "just as it is," as they say. The souk of Ida Ougourd.







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Thematic: Green in nature. The green of tea plantations in Munnar, a bamboo forest in Les Landes, and a park in Tokyo.

To chat about the side topics of the theme "Fish," this is the place!

Back to the contest theme: Fish: April 2025 Photo Contest Theme

Hi everyone,

Starting tomorrow (the first day of the month), the April contest kicks off with the theme "Fish."

Important note: There was a contest in January 2020 on the theme "Fishing," where we hardly saw any fish. So this time, it should not be about fishing but mainly about fish. Live fish (1), dead fish (2), fish used in various artistic (3), commercial (4), or other illustrations (5).

Practical details:

Participation: Each VF member can submit up to 3 photos, until Saturday, April 26 at 11:59 PM Brussels time. Each photo should be posted in a separate message, with its number (1, 2, or 3). Don’t forget to add a little explanation (comment, location, etc.).

Voting: Each VF member can vote for the 3 photos they think are the best, based on their own criteria and the theme.

Voting will take place from Sunday, April 27 to Wednesday, April 30 at 11:59 PM Brussels time.

The selected photos will be ranked in order of preference: - 1st photo: 3 points - 2nd: 2 points - 3rd: 1 point

The winner is the photographer whose photo receives the most points.

Results will be published on May 1. In case of a tie, the number of first-place votes will decide. The winner will have the honor of organizing the May 2025 contest.

Photos that have already been nominated (1st, 2nd, or 3rd place) in another contest are not eligible for this one.

This thread is exclusively for photos submitted to the contest. All discussions, comments, and chit-chat should be posted in the thread: Discussion on the April 2025 contest theme "Fish"

(1) Japanese fish (not yet turned into sushi 😛)



(2) Fish considered small fry and left on an Indonesian beach



(3) Street art in Bristol (England)



(4) Sign in Bristol (England)



(5) Hikiyama Exhibition Hall in Karatsu (Kyushu, Japan)



Good luck! 😛

PS: Whales, sperm whales, porpoises, and dolphins are welcome—let’s be inclusive! 😎

A somewhat lengthy title... I could have simply written: from Bangkok to Chiang Rai, via Chiang Mai, since that was my route. But when poets embellish our travel journals with their verbal flourishes, you’ve got to try not to be too ordinary.

Skyscrapers of excess? You’ll have gathered that from the photo illustrating this journal—though it might change as the trip goes on.

The excess of markets—not so much in their size, though... Chatuchak... But in their sheer number. Day markets, night markets, floating markets, fresh produce markets, fish markets, meat markets, spice markets, fabric markets... and even... amulet markets... For luck, good fortune, protection. Not to mention, sadly, the market for girls—and boys, incidentally. I’ve even heard they’re displayed in windows. I’ve heard about that one, like you have, but I didn’t set foot in it, so I can’t say anything about it. Some even claim there’s a black-market trade in children. Disgusting! It reminded me of the book *The Parcel* by Anosh Irani, which I recommended in another journal. The story is set in India, but I’ve been told it exists in Thailand too. So, the "famous Thai markets" we’re bombarded with in paper and online guides—sure, they amazed me in the first few days, and I don’t regret visiting them. But no matter how big they were, I quickly got my fill since you saw the same things at every stall...

I had a market overdose.

Excess of tourism? I should say *tourists*, since I saw them literally swarming in the streets and those famous markets. I’d forgotten about them. I’d lost the habit, living in an Indian city for so long...

Waterfalls are a bit like markets. At this time of year, they’re not particularly spectacular, but they’re everywhere. There are the ones everyone goes to see. For example, Erawan, which I decided to skip even though it was in my original itinerary—I guessed it’d be a nightmare with the selfie circus. On the other hand, you come across them all over the place, hidden in the mountains and forests, not listed in any guide. Not to mention the ones you can find in temples or even private homes... Yes, really! Thais love waterfalls, so they install them in their gardens—and I even saw one in the middle of the city, right on the street! Sometimes they’re tiny, but very photogenic.

But what do ice cubes have to do with this? Why the excess of ice cubes? Not only are they everywhere by the ton, but they put them in *everything* you drink. You’d think they’d even put them in soup! And it’s not just one or two ice cubes—no! They fill the container to the brim, whatever it is, then pour the liquid on top to fill the gaps. They’ll make you an excellent coffee right in front of you, piping hot, then—bam! An avalanche of ice cubes in the glass. Okay, I’m exaggerating a little. They *do* sometimes ask if you prefer your coffee—or tea—hot. Everything edible, and especially everything drinkable, is refrigerated: vegetables, fruit, hot drinks (I mean, drinks that are *usually* hot), but meat and fish are left out in the open. They just wave a little whisk to shoo away the flies when they get too eager. Mind you, I never put fruit, cheese, eggs, or water in the fridge in France, but I do in India. And I refrigerate meat and fish too... Though sometimes one of those little flies sneaks into the fridge...

You won’t find practical or technical details in this journal, like addresses or prices. Others do that better than me. You also won’t find the names of obscure or unknown places I discovered, or directions to get there.

I don’t really feel like recounting what I saw day by day, following my schedule and route. There might be flashbacks, projections into the future. It’ll depend on my memories, what I felt, what I hated, what comes back to me—and maybe your questions and our exchanges. And for those who’ve never read me before, you’ll have to get used to my parentheses and digressions, maybe on a completely different subject, as my thoughts wander. Stories within stories. There’ll also be long, endless sentences—but still punctuated, so you can follow along. Though I used to curse Proust and his sentences that started on one page and ended on the next, sometimes even further. I’d have to reread them twenty times to follow and understand what he was saying. I hated Proust. But hey, I was 20. Maybe I’d like him now?

See? The digressions are starting already. Forgive me.

You’ll find few photos here. First, the number is limited, and second, photos aren’t the main purpose of either VF or a travel journal. They’re too often used to mask the poverty of the text. And, sorry to say it, but so many of them are just plain ugly! If you really want to see photos, I’ll share some links where you can browse them at your leisure

Hi there,

The title might be a bit long, but I hope it’s completely understandable!

When it comes to choosing your next trip, what tips the scales in favor of Eritrea over Ibiza?

Why pick Canada over French Polynesia?

The price? A magazine or TV report, a travel journal, an Instagram ad? Ease of travel? Minimal time difference? The country that has the most in common with all the trip participants? Activities? Relaxation? The desire to push your limits?

A photo?



What else, I wonder...

Personally, I often prioritize simple destinations (no administrative hassles), where I’m not at risk (nothing extraordinary like getting kidnapped by Daesh or ending up in a jail cell because the current geopolitics aren’t favorable to my passport, etc.), and where I can drive.

Wide-open natural spaces are more my thing than urban anthills.

Finally, I try not to spend three days on a plane to reach my destination, and I aim for a maximum budget of 3500 € (for 3 weeks) in comfortable conditions—that means charming hotels, good meals, etc.

What about you?🙂

Friday, November 4 My flight Barcelona - Abu Dhabi - Delhi went smoothly, it’s on time, and here I am back in India after 3 long years. As I step off the plane, we head toward customs. It’s 3 AM, I’m tired but happy. The huge customs hall is below ground level and buzzing with people who’ve just arrived. In the end, they’re well organized—Indians to the left, foreigners to the right, and all along the hall, the customs officers’ posts, who remain very zen despite the crowd. It took me less than 2 hours to get out of the airport, which was pretty quick. For this return trip, I got in touch with a driver from the "Lovers of India" group who was supposed to take me from the airport to Udaipur, passing through non-touristy villages like I love. This French-speaking driver had convinced me to travel by car, which was supposed to make moving from village to village easier. Two or three days before departure, I receive a message from the driver saying he was sick with a cold and sending another driver, his very kind brother who knows Rajasthan well but doesn’t speak French. I’m a bit disappointed by this message and doubtful about the driver’s sincerity, but I don’t have time to find another driver, so I stick to my plans, though I’m not at ease. At the exit, the driver hasn’t arrived, and I wait half an hour before seeing him show up with a big smile, "Namaste." We don’t waste time and head to the car, which is clean and new. We get to know each other in the car and hit the road toward Alwar. Along the way, we stop for lunch and to taste my first masala chai, which wakes up my taste buds.



I doze off during the drive, and we arrive at the Atlantic Hotel in Alwar at 10:30 AM. My room is on the ground floor, and I settle in quickly. The Wi-Fi isn’t working, but the staff do everything they can to fix it. At noon, Gajender, the driver, suggests visiting the Qila Fort, which is on the heights of Alwar. The fort is closed for restoration, but safari tours are offered—jeep, guide, driver, and visit for 1600 Rs.



We follow the great wall, which is impressive—the second largest in India and the third in the world.



We spot peacocks and monkeys.





The guide shows me an old stepwell lost in nature. It’s always my thing to check out these baoris, which can be stunning, but this one isn’t anything special. We arrive at the palace overlooking the city.



We walk around the palace, and I discover another stepwell that’s not worth lingering over.

The tour is over, and I had a great time despite the fatigue. We head back down to Alwar, near the City Palace, which has been turned into administrative offices. Gaju (the driver’s nickname) finds a parking spot near a dhaba where we have lunch (paneer masala, chapatis, chai)—it’s delicious. With my energy restored, we head to the palace. On the top floor is a museum that I visit.



At the exit of the museum, we have to go back down and walk around the palace to get to the Moosi Maharani Chhatri. I’ve been here once before and really liked it, and the place is still the same—calm and relaxing.



"This monument is the most artistic in Alwar and also the most royal, filled with fascinating history. Maharaja Vinay Singh of Alwar built this two-story cenotaph in 1815 in memory of his father, Maharaja Bakhtawar Singh. It’s also known as Moosi Maharani ki Chhatri, named after the king’s mistress, who performed sati upon his death. After the sati, she was accepted as the king’s wife. It’s an elegant monument, shaped like a flower and built with a mix of brown sandstone and white marble. The first floor is made of sandstone, while the upper floor and the chhatris (cenotaphs) are in white marble. Its sculpted pavilion has dome-shaped arches with intricate lace-like and exquisite floral patterns. There are complex motifs that shine brightly in the sunlight. The colorful circular ceiling is an important part of Moosi Maharani Ki Chhatri and is adorned with faded gold-leaf paintings of mythological figures and scenes. The footprints of Maharaja and Moosi Rani are engraved in marble inside the cenotaph, and locals pay their respects to them."



Near the chhatri, there’s a large water reservoir with a magnificent view. The place is peaceful and relaxing, and I stay here for a while, contemplating and daydreaming before heading back to the hotel for some well-deserved rest. The Wi-Fi is working now. I’m the only foreign guest, and since my room is near the entrance, I’ll be well taken care of throughout my stay.

This catchy and somewhat mysterious title comes from several questions I’ve been asking myself.

VF has been back open for a reasonable number of weeks and months now. The number of visitors overall matches past averages, but the number of members online in the last 24 hours seems relatively lower than what we used to see.

Yet, to my surprise, I’m seeing fewer travel journals, way fewer messages, and way fewer questions. I don’t see many new registered users online, and I notice a number of members who are logged in but either aren’t participating or have stopped participating.

Something’s not adding up for me because, in my opinion, VF is still appealing, and I don’t see which other sites could really compete.

Was there a real break between pre- and post-Covid? Does it just take more time for some people to discover the site or learn that it’s active again? Do people now prefer quick consumption on sites like FB or others I’m not familiar with? Where have the site’s old-timers gone, and what are they doing with their time now? What’s really going on here?