Long Weekend in Finger Lakes

What a joy! At the moment, I'm sitting on a sunny patio in the Liberty Village (Toronto), sipping cold cider and trying to recall all the details of the last weekend in Finger Lakes.

We left Mississauga around 6AM on a cloudy Saturday morning with 4 hours of driving ahead of us. Crossing the US border was much quicker this time (compare to previous time we drove to NY) and soon we were driving on American soil. We stopped at the very first petrol station because we were driving on fumes rather than petrol - the yellow warning light was blinking ferociously...

We met our friends on the outskirts of Ithaca and after hugs (man) and kisses (girls) headed for the Robert H. Truman State Park. The park was everything you could expect from a state park: immense and very green! We were quickly given a key to our cabin.

After unpacking and drove 5 minutes to the upper park to do hiking and take a glimpse at the Old Mill and the 115-foot Lucifer Falls (catchy name).

Later that evening, we made (vegetarian) BBQ and headed to Ithaca to explore the city. Ithaca is a home of Cornell University and the Ithaca College (according to Wikipedia, with almost 20,000 students) so there was abundant night life to satisfy even the most hardcore clubber.

The following day we walked the walk! After cooking and eating (our friends were well prepared) late breakfast we soldered the Rim Trail (2.25 miles), the Red Pine Trail (½ mile) and the Gorge Trail (2.25 miles), not without incidents.

On a way to Upper Park (that would be the Rim Trail), girls were obsessive about cameras and lenses.

They literally took picture of everything that moved, grew or just happened to be in the park, and that included a beautiful red gecko.

On a way back, they had a chance to take a photo of two fat snakes (I think those were Mississauga snakes) that happened to be on our path but instead they demonstrated their vocal abilities (yeah... screaming on top of their lungs). 

Later that day, we drove (again) to Ithaca to stroll on the waterfront promenade, quick visited Cornell University and finished our day with a very nice dinner at the Boat Yard Grill restaurant (http://www.boatyardgrill.com/).

On our third (and last) day, we have decided to rent kayaks. After a morning discussion of Russian foreign policy and whatever Latvians are too nationalistic (there is nothing like politics for breakfast), we headed to Puddle Dockers (http://www.puddledockers.com/rentals.htm).

Our friends took a single kayak each and we decided to share a tandem version. Of course, after the excitement died out, I was the only “engine” to put that kayak (which was big enough to be called a “barge”) across the lake. It was sunny and we have managed to sneak two bottles of apple cider and cherry beer... IT WAS FUN! Then followed locally sourced, organic, non GM lunch and we headed home. This time the border crossing was 2 and 1/2 hours long, but who cares...

Happy New Year - Year of the Tiger

A quick update on what is going on: at the moment, we are in Latvia, getting ready for the New Year's Eve celebrations (cooking, cleaning and... chopping wood for the "heating system" and Banya). Two of our friends gave birth, so yesterday we went to see two newly born babies - a boy and a girl. The girl is three and the boy is five weeks old - so tiny and so soft (I am still so fascinated by how a woman has a living creature in a belly for nine month).

Alright, it is time to go to the Dacha, so Happy New Year - Year of the Tiger - everyone! Wish you all what you wish for yourself - may everything come true!

Weekend in Venice

Ohh Venice, beautiful Venice... Venice is a city of curved bridges and canals, beautiful architecture, hidden plazas and churches... a truly unique city.

It is impossible to drive in Venice and probably unnecessary around it. From the airport, there are two options to get into the city: ATVO Express (€3.00) and ACTV 5 (€2.50). You can buy tickets at the public-transportation booth in the arrivals terminal, which also sells 12- to 72-hour ACTV tourist tickets. If you stay outside Venice, there are numerous busses going everywhere, including Rome. We took the express bus to Venice and from there line 53E to Dolo, a small town between Venice and Padova. Villa Gasparini, a hotel where we stayed, is located on the outskirts of Dolo. Luckily, the bus stop is only 50m from the hotel because there are no sidewalks in Italy. Everybody is either driving or driving...

After a quick shower, we went to a nearby pizza (what else?) restaurant for a bite. Although there are a lot of Italian restaurants in cities such as London, Toronto, Tel Aviv and New York, you cannot compare it to a real Italian pizza; it is thin, crispy and loaded with goodies! On the other hand, stay away from their beer...

The day after, we sent to explore Venice. Since we stayed outside (in Dolo), our starting point was Piazza Roma (central bus station). So, without further due, here comes John Markh “A Parfect Day in Venice” guide:

From Piazza Roma (bay 4B), walk through souvenir booths and cross the small canal. Take left, then next right (just next to Mercure hotel) across another bridge which will take you to a small plaza where you can fill your water bottle. From there, walk back in the direction of the bus station and follow signs to Piazza San Marco. Don’t afraid to be adventurous and take small detours; there are signs every couple of blocks and you might discover a hidden gem which will make your journey more special (you might as well write your own guide to Venice). The rout should take you to the Academia (bridge) where, if you have a moment, you could take right to the waterfront to get a well deserved ice cream and fantastic views. Walk back to the Academia bridge and continue to Piazza San Marco. Piazza San Marco was a centre of political and religious life in Venice for centuries and it is plainly displayed by the wealth of decorations and beauty of the place. Walk around and if the line is not to look, go inside Basilica to marvel at gold mosaics and up the Campanile (bell tower) for marvellous views.

From there, take left along Riva degli Schiavoni (the waterfront) and admire the views, crowds of people and turn nose up at all the trinket stands (you can do better for souvenirs elsewhere). When the crowd thins, take a table at one of the waterfront cafes and enjoy a slightly overpriced pizza or salad and bottle of wine (better service, quality and price the farther down you go....).

After a refreshing snack, find your way to Arsenale and either take a vaporetto (water bus) or walk the mazes of Venice to Rialto Bridge. Wander across with the incredible hordes of tourists and continue over bridge and through the mass of souvenir stalls to the outdoor markets - if you like seafood keep wandering a bit further up this main drag to the incredible outdoor fish market - quite a sight!

From here, start following (loosely) signs to Piazza Roma (bus station). It will take you through San Polo district. If you go to the far end and turn right, you should see Antica La Corte Birreria. It is a great local place for pizza, salads, light meal and dessert for a reasonable price at Campo San Polo. Also, there are number of interesting shops where you could buy souvenirs or Moreno glass for a decent price. Exit into the sunlight and go further up to Campo Santa Marguerite - very active place with lots of bars, small pubs and shops.

This was an unforgettable weekend...

Check out the photo album at http://picasaweb.google.com/john.markh/20090816Venice#slideshow.

Ciao, John.

Traveller Tips: Don’t stay in the Venice itself; it is a complete nightmare to drag your luggage through all those bridges. On the other hand, don’t stay too far as you won’t be able to use the ACTV tourist tickets. If you use public transport, buy your tickets in advance (from ACTV ticket office or from snack shops). When you buy on board, it usually costs more. However, if all you have is a €100 note, the driver might let you ride for free! In Venice, plan your route carefully as there are only 2 bridges across Grand Canal itself and it could be a really long walk between those two. There are plenty of fountains with drinking water in Venice itself; all you need is a 1l plastic bottle to fill and refill when needed.

Cross Canada Trip - Day Eight – Jasper National Park

Previous Post: Cross Canada Trip - Day Seven – Banff National Park

After a long day in Banff national park (arrived around 10PM to the hotel), today we are going to explore Jasper; It is the largest park in the Rocky Mountain region and less crowded than nearby Banff. It is a bit colder as well, but hey, you are in Canada...

We have stayed at the The Best Western Jasper Inn & Suites hotel which is not far from the main road. Having said that, Jasper is small enough to have everything close enough to the main road. Since I woke up earlier than the rest, I went to a nearby Robinson's Good Food Naturally store to get some groceries for the breakfast and to the rest of the day. Do not forget, breakfast is the most important meal of the day...

The rest of the day was as following: Mount Edith Cavell (30km from Jasper) – Fantastic! Absolutely stunning place! It is a bit difficult drive to the parking but well worth it; When we got there, around 11AM, it was cold and snowing! I guess T-shirt and a jacket is not a proper wear for mountains. The walk itself is quite easy (the more difficult path was closed due to the weather) and you can see hanging glaciers and alpine meadows. We were brave enough to drink from the mountain river which is basically melted ice... Athabasca Falls (30 km from Jasper) – 23 meter waterfall, considered the be the most powerful in the park. Maligne Canyon (10km from Jasper) – On the northern end of the Maligne Valle, there is a very (50 meters) deep canyon. The name is derived from the French "mal" to infer sick, or evil as in "malicious". It is incredibly narrow and has confounded geologists for many years (http://www.explorejasper.com/sights/malignecanyon.htm). If you get there, there are nearby Medicine Lake and Maligne Lake to explore. Miette Hot Springs (60km from Jasper) – Two hop pools with the hottest mineral springs in the Canadian Rockies – fantastic end for a day. The entrance fee is about 6$ and you can stay for up to two hours (which is more than enough). Don't forget to bring your own towel, slippers and bathing suit (renting those is quite expensive).

That is it for today. Check out the photo album at http://picasaweb.google.com/alla.markh/20090626Jasper#

Enjoy, John.

Cross Canada Trip - Day Seven – Banff National Park

Previous Post: Cross Canada Trip - Day Six – Calgary

National parks in Rockies are amazing in beauty! Just to drive on scenic Icefields Parkway (93) is a fantastic experience. I consider this to be the best part of our trip and our only mistake was to make it as short as 3 days (actually, not even 3 full days).

One a first day, we covered Banff National Park. It takes about 1 hour to drive from Calgary to the Town of Banff. It is a very small town (population of 8721) but has all the essential services (post office, restaurants, groceries, etc). From there, we planned our day based on recommendations in AA Canada KeyGuide and Mountain Guide (free guide with maps and a lot of useful information).

From there, we drove to: Johnstop Canyon (about 25 km from Banff) - Trail and catwalks which take you to a Lower (1.1km) and Upper (2.7km) falls. Lake Louise and Lake Agnes (about 55km from Banff) – Fantastic, if a bit difficult, trail (3.8km) which takes you to a Tea House at Lake Agnes high above Lake Louise. To get there, park at Lake Louise parking area and walk along the lake shore promenade for about 1.2 km. Take the right fork (it is signed) which climbs immediately from the water edge. After 2km, you will reach a tiny plateau where you can pause to admire Mirror Lake (small lake trapped in the mountains and surrounded by rocks and huge trees). Another 1km up will take you to a Tea House at Lake Agnes. Crowfoot Glacier (25km from Lake Louise) – A short hike (10 minutes) from a parking area on the Icefield Parkway for a magnificent view of the Crowfoot glacier. According to the Mountain Guide, it used to have 3 ‘toes’ of ice but since then the lower toe and part of the middle one have melted back. Mistaya Canyon (72km from Lake Louise) – Only 10 minutes walk from the parking area takes you through rounded potholes and natural arches on the canyon walls.

From there, we continued straight to Jasper only stopping at Saskatchewan Crossing (77km from Lake Louise) to refuel and buy some food (we still had those 5kg of sausages), and rest points along the Icefield Parkway to stretch our legs.

You can see all the photos at http://picasaweb.google.co.uk/alla.markh/20090625Banff.

Enjoy, John.

Travellers Tips: Entrance to Jasper, Banff, Kootenay and Yoho requires a pass; daily pass cost $9.80 for an adult. Do not forget to take a Mountain Guide which is full with useful maps and a lot of information. Saskatchewan Crossing (77km from Lake Louise) is the last fuel station until Jasper.

Cross Canada Trip - Day Six – Calgary

Morning flight to Calgary was flawless. Air Canada has surprisingly new and renovated fleet; all the airplanes are clean, comfortable and each passenger has individual TV screen. I have passed the four hours flight by watching a Pink Panther 2 and playing GTA Miami Vice (yeah!).
At the airport, we rented a car with Hertz for a following week (that's it, our "green" credentials will never be the same) and drove to the city.
First things you notice about Calgary are the vastness of the city and the lack of people on the street; at first it feels like a ghost town. After checking in into Ramada Limited hotel (although I strongly believe it should be called motel), we went to explore the city. Compare to London (and even Toronto), the streets are amazingly wide; five lanes in each direction and that was not a cross country highway. I think people here have no idea how to spell “traffic jam”. We went to a Glenbow Museum to see a collection of Canadian art and exhibition dedicated to the First Nation people. Later, my mom joined us (straight from Miami) for the rest of the trip. After picking her up from the Calgary Airport, we (now three of us) tried the same trick as with CN Tower in Toronto: free observation from Calgary Tower (even the restaurant name is the same as in Toronto).
Check out the Calgary’s photo album at http://picasaweb.google.com/alla.markh/20090624Calgary

Ciao,
John

Travellers Tips:

• You can get a segnificant discount on a car rental quote by using 'Counter Discount Programme' or 'CDP'.

Cross Canada Trip - Day Four and Five - The French Province

Previous Post: Cross Canada Trip - Day Three – Niagara Falls

9 AM VIA train from Union station is how our French adventure starts. Five hours later we are in Montreal. The journey itself had nothing to write about; the trains in Europe are faster and better equipped.

We have stayed at Glamour Suits and Apartments hotel. It is a chick hotel in Parisian style right in the city centre. That day, we took a walk through older parts of Montreal (mainly for Notre Dame de Montreal) and Port Viex (lakeside park and recreation centre). The city is a strange mixture of “old world” and “new world”: the roads are wide, the buildings (downtown) are tall but the attitude on the other hand is definitely European.

The next day (this is our sixth day in Canada) we paid a quick visit to Biodome and after that took a bus (http://www.orleansexpress.com/) to Quebec City. According to the local guide, it is where Canada was established by Samuel de Champlain, a French merchant. The old city managed to retain its unique style and charm, and it is the only walled city in the North America. The must visit places are: Notre Dame de Quebec Palace d’Armes Governors Wall (promenade) The Citadel Fortifications (you can walk on the walls!) Parc d’Artilleries The city is full of small coffee places, restaurants, boutiques and historic building (with absolutely amazing architecture). We stopped to eat at Au Petit Coin Breton (1029 rue St-Jean, Quebec city) where they have 60 different kinds of creeps. The food was delicious! The cheese filling I had was melting in my mouth.

Check out our photo albums http://picasaweb.google.com/alla.markh/10090622Montreal http://picasaweb.google.com/alla.markh/20090623Quebec

That is it for now....

Cross Canada Trip - Day Three – Niagara Falls

Previous Post: Cross Canada Trip - Day Two – Toronto

Today, the day started with the usual pancake breakfast and we were ready to start our Niagara Falls adventure. We have booked with Magic Bus company through our hotel because... well, it was cheaper than others. That day we met John from Chicago who stayed in the Canadiana Backpackers Inn and joined the Niagara Falls trip. The drive to the falls takes about 1 and a half hours and there is nothing spectacular along the way. We passed Mississauga, Oakville, Burlington and Hamilton before reaching the Niagara Falls city.

First, we boarded “Maid of the Mist” boat which took us closer to both American and Canadian (much prettier) falls. You can summarise the whole experience as “getting wet”; although we were given ponchos, everything that was not properly covert got really wet. We spend another two hours in the Niagara Fall city (had too) which is another soulless breed between cheap restaurants, wax museums and amusement park.

After all boarded the bus, we drove through a Niagara Falls parkway to a Niagara on the Lake. It is a traditional town that kept the 1900 look and feel: no chain shops are allowed, no large vehicles drive through and all the signs written using old style. It is considered to be the prettiest town in Canada! As to the parkway itself, Winston Churchill said that driving through Niagara Parkway is the best Sunday drive ever.

Our last stop with Magic Bus was the “20 Bees” vinery for a wine tasting. The pinnacle of it was the ice wine. There are only 20 places on earth suitable to produce ice wine and Canada producing 80% of all. The process (in the nut shell) is to leave the grapes on the vine till January when temperatures are between -15 and -20 Celsius when the water in the grape freezes and when crushed it leaves pure concentrated grape juice. It takes 15 times more grapes to produce the same quantity of wine, which explains the price: average bottle of white ice wine cost around $50. The wine itself is very sweet and usually served as a desert.

Two hours after, when finally in Toronto, we went to meet the “family”: apparently, there are quite a few Markhs living in Toronto. After being dined and wined, and given 5kg (I kid you not) of different types of sausages and meats (those guys are running a very successful sausages business) we ended up having a drink in the Yorkville with our cousin Sarah and her friend.

Tomorrow, Montreal!

Travellers Tips: Shop around for the best deal (We paid $45 plus £13.5 for Maid of the Mist).

Cross Canada Trip - Day Two – Toronto

Previous Post: Canada - First Impression

Today, we had major plans and that did not includ taking over the world (at this point, you should imagine an evil “muwhaa muwhaa muwhaa”).

Our morning started with “eat as much as you can” pancakes with maple syrup: SUPERB! When we finally managed to pull ourselves from the dining table, we went to a China town and Kensington market (http://www.kensington-market.ca/). Between those two, you can fine absolutely anything you can imagine (go ahead, let your imagination fly). Since the weather was fantastic (25C with clear skies) and we had some time to kill (read on), we went through the University of Toronto to a Queens Park Circle (the university is really impressive, well worth the visit) and down the University avenue to the CN Tower (http://www.cntower.com/). - did you know that it is the tallest free standing structure in the world? As advised in our “Canada” guide, we have booked a table in the 360⁰ restaurant located 351m above the ground in order to escape the queues and save $21.99 (each). During the day, the food is reasonably prices considering the location, atmosphere (the restaurant is constantly rotates around the core completing the circle in 72 minutes and where else could you eat that high above the ground?) and the quality of it. After the lunch, you can walk one floor down to the observatory deck and with glass floors.

From there, we hang around the Rogers Centre (http://www.rogerscentre.com/) and went to the Harbourfront Centre (http://www.harbourfrontcentre.com/). There was a “Toronto Nautical Festival” and the Harbourfront Centre itself is a waterfront walkways and parks which extend all the way through Toronto. We gave up somewhere around Bathurst street, went up town till Queen street and back to the hostel. The impression is that all Canadians decided to get out and spend the sunny evening in the local pubs and cafes; everything was filled to the brim.

Now, I’m sitting on a porch in the hostel and reflecting on two experiences I had today: people and... beer! Canadians seems to be a cheerful, friendly and generally good looking bunch of people. Some are smart as well (she is worshiping Lidia White who is a professor in the University of Toronto), but I guess it could be said about every countryman in the world (there are exclusions, but I won’t include those here). The same opinion cannot be extended to beer; after tasting this beverage in UK, Germany, Czech Republic and even France, Canadian brewers still have a long way to go... but maybe it was a wrong choice. My inner self tells me not to give up and keep trying as there is always a hope to find the “holy grail” of Canadian beer.

Check out the photo album http://picasaweb.google.com/alla.markh/20090619Toronto

I will stop here as tomorrow is another long and exciting day: we are taking a tour to Niagara Falls!

Ciao, John.

Travellers Tips: If you are going to the CN Tower (highly recommended), consider having a lunch at 360⁰ restaurant.

Canada – The First Impression

Yesterday night (11pm) we landed in the frozen giant’s capital – Toronto. Air Canada’s flight was as good as expected, well worth extra 50 quid (if you compare it with Air Transat). Except having slightly different accent, it was an English Summer in a full blossom (raining). For those who are planning to travel to Toronto, there is a very good public transport system. From the airport, you can take bus 192 and then subway to anywhere in the city for $2.75 (don’t forget to ask the driver for the transfer ticket). After an hour in the subway and 15 minutes walk, we finally arrived to Canadiana Backpackers Inn (http://www.canadianalodging.com/), a place we are going to call home for the next 4 days.

First (technically, it is our second) day was gloomy and rainy. Toronto is quite walkable, so we went to a new city hall (impressive curved skyscraper) and bought “hop on hop off” ticket. Don’t rush to buy it at the hotel as there are number of Double Decker bus companies and with different deals. We’ve got a 3 day ticket with Grey Line (http://www.grayline.com/Grayline/destinations/canada/toronto.go) which includes (it is called the neighbourhoods route) Downtown, East and West Toronto, and South and North Toronto routes for $32. After doing the Downtown and East and West Toronto routes, we explored Eaton Centre (was not my idea) and then took a ferry to a Toronto islands (the ferry terminal is about 30 minutes walk). The place (island) is a must visit and well worth $6.50; even if you do not plan to spend any time on the islands, the views from the ferry on the Toronto downtown are amazing! There are nice parks, animal farm, beaches, lakes, etc. on the island and too easy to spend the whole day there. When we returned to a mainland, we took a subway to York (north of downtown) where (apparently) lives a large Russian community. No offence, but every time I go to Russian communities, I want to live there less and less. In the end we went to a jazz club on @317 King St. West Toronto where they serve an amazing Italian and a range of cocktails for $5 each.

Alright, it is a long day tomorrow (being a tourist is not an easy thing) and time to sleep...

Ciao, John.

Travellers Tips: A trip on a (excellent) public transport in Toronto cost $2.75 and includes transfers. Don't forget to ask for a transfer ticket! If you are a student, do not forget to apply (and bring with you) for ISIC card! All the prices you see do not include state and government taxes!

Christmas and New Year in US

OMG! New York, Miami and New York again; what a vacation…!

In those 3 1/2 week, we have managed to celebrate Christmas (or, shall I write Hanukkah?), New Year and more importantly, change our perception of North Americans (Barak Obama has nothing to do with it). I won’t bore you too much since there is nothing to add to those photo albums: http://picasaweb.google.com/alla.markh/20081222Miami http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-5007234194756178426&hl=en http://picasaweb.google.com/alla.markh/200800101NewYork

Enjoy, J.

P.S.: Can someone please explain why it feels colder in London (-1..+2C) than New York (-6..-2C)?

The End of a Benelux Era

“Bonjour monsieur”… “Bonjour madame” … “Comment vas-tu?”

It is over… it is finally over! For the last two month I was working most of the time in Luxembourg and Belgium, and boy… they all speak French! It is not like I have any problem with it, I just don’t speak the language… and I’m a bit tired of living in hotels.

Last week, instead of flying to London, I took a train from Luxembourg to Brussels to spend the weekend there. Since we already been in Brussels and out friend were busy on Saturday (during the day), we went to Bruges (couple of photos here: http://picasaweb.google.com/john.markh/20081213WeekendInBelgium).

That evening we were in for huge surprise: Christmas festival on the Brussels main squire. Although it was packed with locals and tourists, the music, lights, dances and the atmosphere were brilliant! I took two short movies with my new (and green, literally green) camera: http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=1228114364154268444&hl=en http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-73156388038689574&hl=en Then, after the festival (well, we didn’t really stay till the end – it was too cold), our friends (N & A) took us to a local gem: a pub with history! The place is run by Moroccan grandpa who collected “stuff” (there is no other word to describe the collection) and randomly placed in through the floors. It includes paintings, posters, broken sewing machines, statues, lamps, etc. And, they serve delicious raspberry flavoured wine which can make you really “happy”...

Well, time to go... John.

Rosh Hashanah in Israel

You know, the Jewish people are the chosen one. Otherwise, how can you explain that from mid September till (almost) the end of October there are holidays! First of all, you have Rosh Hashanah (a Jewish new year), then the Yom Kippur (judgement day) and finally, Sukkot festival.

This year, my wife managed to convince me to go Israel for Rosh Hashanah. Of course it involved a lot of eating, then eating and finally, eating. There was some kind of competition between my grandma, Alyona's grandma, her uncle and my dad who can feed us better (or more). The first couple of days would more or less as usual when you are visiting long-no-see relative (chit chat, food and some swimming), except my dad scheduled a high class flying demonstration of himself (check out the photo album here). I've got him a “Pilot for a Day” package and he waited for me to come to Israel to fly with him. For those who doesn't know, my dad is an experience pilot, on a highways on Israel...

Then we had the Rosh Hashanah dinner with all the relative squeezed into uncle's apartment where we had some more food, wine and card games (with younger cousins).

On the next day, we made a short trip to Mount Sodom and the Dead Sea where Alyona (and my dad) experienced firsts handed a mud treatment to “renew and rejuvenate” the skin. After this trip, we took the car and drove north, to do some hiking (Gilabon falls and Ein Tina) and meet with my old friends (check out the photo album here).

Enjoy, John.

Farming Tourism In Riga

Last weekend, we went to a quite vacation in Riga, Latvia to relax and to release everyday stress (after all, we do live and work in London). As the expression “Arbeit macht frei” goes, I had released my stress by working… working hard!

Take a look at the photo album at @ http://picasaweb.google.com/john.markh/20080914FarmingTourismInRiga

Enjoy, John.

P.S.: If someone is interested, I can arrange (a small administration fee will be charged) a weekend (full boarding) at the “farm” where you will be able to release stress and breath fresh air into polluted lungs of yours.

Birthday in Bulgaria

Boys and girls, gather around your screens, take a popcorn and soda (or beer), and let me tell you a magical story about Bulgaria, the land of Bulgarians and... Gipsies! As you all know, I had my 29th birthday and my wife's present was a week (plus 2 weekends) in Bulgaria (the wonders of married life).

On a first day, when we arrived to Sofia, Sergo (who managed to steal a car) and Sveta picked us up from the airport and immediately, we went to a mountains to enjoy the views, escape the heat and the dust of the city (it was close to 40C), and sample local cousin (local dark beer was AMAZING) at the... hmm... can't remember the name. Later that day, we took a night walk (after couple of cocktails) on the streets of deserted Sofia.

Before I will go on, let me tell you, Sofia is every bit ex-Socialist country where people took democracy to the wrong direction. All the building (including historic and governmental) are spoiled with graphite and half of the bricks are missing (I didn't know they can walk away on their own). Also, all of the people (at least the 37+) are frowning all the time. It's like they've seen socialism, and now they've seen capitalism, and they're not impressed with either one. On the other hand, it could be the heat...

On a day after, after having an early and a very tasty breakfast (eggs, eggs and some more eggs), we drove to Sezopol. Basically, it is a very long drive across Bulgaria but surprisingly, the roads (or the highways) are not bad at all and you are allowed to drive 120kph on most of them. We arrived to Santa Marina resort (2km outside Sezopol), checked in and drove to the ancient town of Sezopol to eat (yes, we did it a lot).

The next few days were pretty much as every vacation looks like: Sun Beach (or pool) Aqua park Old, in some cases ancient and sometimes very small cities with a lot of tourists Beer and food, food and more food Ohh yeah, and a birthday cake (2kg of sugar, cream, caramel and chocolate)

Out of all places we have visited (Burgas, Sezopol, Nesebar,Sveti Vlas, Primorsko, Kitten and Plavdiv), I can recommend only one place – Sezopol. It is an old town (with historical value) on the cliffs with amazing view on the Black Sea, friendly people, excellent cousin and not too many tourists so you can walk around and enjoy your time.

If you ask yourself “where are the photos?”, there is too much of them and we are working to delete some (or most) of them. I will upload them as soon as we are done... [10/09/2008] and finally, here they are (I had to delete a lot of old photo album to free up some space on Picasa Web): http://picasaweb.google.co.uk/john.markh/20080829BirthdayInBulgariaPart1 http://picasaweb.google.co.uk/john.markh/20080829BirthdayInBulgariaPart2

Enjoy, John.

P.S.: A short lesson in Bulgarian culture: Drink “Aryan” when you are hot, drink “Aryan” when you are cold and drink “Aryan” when you are thirsty [more info can be found here: http://mideastfood.about.com/od/drinkscoffeetea/r/ayran.htm]. Ohh yeah, and you also have to try Bulgarian Chushki Burek (roasted peppers stuffed with cheese), Za-Za (small fried fish which goes really well with beer – local beer or as a cat food) and “Fish On A Roof Tile” (sorry, don't remember the Bulgarian name) which is a whole fish (I had Mackerel) in a roof tile, topped with a rich, red-wine, tomato, and shallot sauce, then slow baked.

Anniversary 2.0

Here we are, two years together and believe it or not, still love each other. For our anniversary we went to Cornwall, south west part of UK. Not only that, but I was driving (on the other side of the road)! Before I go on, I have to say that driving on the left side of the road is not the most difficult thing, but having gear box on your left side and change gears using your left arm... that was tricky. We planned to make our base in Plymouth and to take short trips to locations around. On the first day, we drove past pile of stones better known as Stonehenge. We also managed to drive past Salisbury cathedral on a way to Plymouth. On the second day, we drove to St. Michael's Mount, Marazion and Land's End (where the land actually ends). St Michael's Mount (Cornish name: Carrack Looz en Cooz) situated in Penwith in west Cornwall and united with Marazion by a natural causeway cast up by the sea and passable only at low tide. Since there was no low tide, we had to catch a ride on a boat to get there. Land's End, is the most western location in UK. Just before you hit the point, there is put which called "The Last Pub in England". I don't believe the world is riding on four giant turtles, but this place does have a feeling of "End". It is really hard to describe the place in words... On the last day, after we checked out from our lovely hotel (Novotel Plymouth) and drove back to London through Bristol. When you compare it to London, you can't fail to notice that people, even when in rush, are slower and more relaxed. It gives certain quality to the city which I really liked...

You can find our photo album at http://picasaweb.google.com/alla.markh/DestinationLandSEnd.

Enjoy, John

Copenhagen

Straight from vacation in Riga (you can find a photo album here: http://picasaweb.google.com/alla.markh/RigaOctober2007), I was sent to a project (thanks god, just a short one) in Copenhagen (København).

Unfortunately, I didn't have enough time to explore the city (yeah... I had to work as well) and to go to a local Tuborg brewery, but you can find some photos at http://picasaweb.google.com/john.markh/20071011Copenhagen.

Enjoy, John.

P.S.: CZA (Czech Airlines) are the best!

Trip to Russia

Finally, back to reality…

I have just returned after ten days in Russia, after 17 years of absence. We (me, mom and sister) went to visit grandma, grandpa and uncle, who came from Moscow, in Urusu.

So first of all, couple of words about Urusu. It is a small village in Tatarstan, about 800km from Moscow, 600km from Kazan, the capital of Tatarstan, and the same distance from Samara, and about 300km from Ufa, the capital of neighbour Bashkiria. According to taxi driver, there are approximately 14,000 people live in Urusu. Get the picture?

To get there, I had to fly to Moscow, wait 12 hours for connection flight to Ufa, then 6 hours by train to nearby major city Oktabrsk and finally 20-30 minutes by bus which goes once in a while. Did I mention dogs ride and walking in the fields for about an hour? We cheated a bit and took taxi from Ufa directly to Urusu which cost us about £25 (more then average monthly salary in Russia).

Although people in Russia (at least in Urusu) are friendly and will try to help you (even when most of them doesn’t know a word in English), the border control was as unfriendly as it gets. My passport was examined by the officer for more then 30 minutes and I was body searched. Probably too many European and US (a.k.a. enemies) stamps in my passports…

Mom and sister been there couple of years ago, but I haven’t seen grandma and grandpa (and Urusu) for more then 17 years, since I was 8 or 9. The city undergo drastic change (more about it later), but the grandma and grandpa look the same. Grandma sees a bit worse and grandpa hears a bit less (OK, so he barely hears at all), but they are as active as I remember them. Everyday, they were awake much earlier that we were and worked with us in the fields as hard as all.

For a week that we have been there, we worked in the field from early morning till evening: rooting weed, preparing ground for winter, cleaning and paining pipes, cutting branches and trees, and about everything else need to be done before the winter. After working for more then 4-5 years in the office, this was a ‘nice’ change. At first, my body ached like hell, but after couple of days I enjoyed physical work, fresh air (something you don’t get in London) and plain but tasty country food which was potatoes (fried or boiled), fresh milk, dark (brown) bread and a lot of fresh vegetables (some of them straight from the field).

The city (still registered as village) celebrated 60 years just before we arrived, so many buildings were freshly pained and streets repaved and cleaned. There were many new shops opened during 17 years, but the biggest surprise was the amount of young people in there. I was expecting to have dying city on the outskirts of Russia, with mostly old and retired people, but it is alive and kicking. There are couple of coffee places, bowling and dance clubs, and… musk. Apparently, after fall of Soviet Union, Tatar people remembered that they are originally Muslims. But, although of progress and modernism of the city, there are still goats, chickens, dogs and ducks roaming the outskirts…

OK, I don’t work for “Lost Guide to Russia”, so enough of that. Check out the photo album at http://picasaweb.google.com/john.markh/20070930TripToRussia

Enjoy, John.

P.S.: You do understand that I would appreciate your comments, don’t you?

The End of "Miami" Era

All things have to end, and so is my short visit to Miami.

It was an excellent visit: boating, dining, tennis, pool, BBQ, music, etc. In those short days I managed to do so much that I can understand how I had time to sleep.

Check out the photo album: http://picasaweb.google.com/john.markh/20070609Miami

Enjoy.

Weekend in Prague

What a beautiful place to be!
We have just came back from Prague, the most beautiful place on this planet. The weather was not too good, but the charm of Prague make up to that.
We stayed not far from the centre of the city, in Arpacay hostel (near Angel station). The hostel was clean, breakfast was good and stuff was friendly.
On the first day, we arrived at 13:00 to Prague, went to the hostel to check in. Following that, we took a metro to the centre to have a good dinner in our favourite restaurant.
The day after, we went to see some old synagogues and Jewish places (where they charge you for "air" you breath) and then for a nice walk along the Vltava and old Vysehrad castle. We finished that do by doing small shopping, some beer and a movie (Sunshine).
Our last day in Prague was dedicated to shopping. After a quick breakfast and tour to Staropramen brewery (it was closed), we went to a Ziclin shopping mall.

Check out the photo album .