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Tagged With "Middle Eastern"

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Re: Sweden jumps into night-train market

George G. ·
My Amtrak night bedroom trips were all up and down the eastern USA mid and south Atlantic.
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Re: So, what’s it worth ?

Travel Luver ·
Great story, Bob!
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Re: So, what’s it worth ?

DrFumblefinger ·
No one spins a travel yarn quite like Robert Cranwell! Enjoyed this one. Podcast is worth listening to as well, everyone.
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Re: So, what’s it worth ?

GarryRF ·
A familiar story when travelling in those countries we know little of. But the eagerness of the Police to put it right was assuring to others that follow. Perhaps we're not that well advanced. An interesting story and educational too.
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Re: Hurricane cancels hundreds of flights, cruises

GarryRF ·
Because the Hurricane went further to the east than expected - my friends in eastern Cuba in the Holguin area told me that Matthew was just wet and windy. He wreaked none of the havoc he had promised.
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Re: The "Eiffel Tour" Only Starts with the Tour Eiffel

Paul Heymont ·
Brunel has fascinated me since reading a book on the Great Eastern, an unlucky ship he designed. Perhaps someday I can find time to post about his work...unless I hear a volunteer? Thanks!
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Re: Where in the World is Gumbo? 7.8 update

PortMoresby ·
I think I'm going to stick with my original guess of a platypus in Australia. If the little critter is near it's natural habitat then I could guess eastern Australia, New South Wales?
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Re: Finishing college. Need help planning trip to U.K,

Hank ·
That's helpful too, Rob. So with your guys advice, I'm thinking of the following plan, which still has holes I need to fill. I actually like the idea of Paris more than Scotland for this trip, plus I worry about the cost of travel to Scotland back so unless I can get a really cheap plane ticket or train ticket to Edinburgh, I think I'll drop that and focus on eastern UK and then on to Paris. So this is where I'm at now: 1) Arrive in Manchester. Maybe ??2 days 2) Travel Liverpool. 3 days 3)...
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Re: Finishing college. Need help planning trip to U.K,

Hank ·
Hi everyone! I'm back. Just arrived at my parents home for Thanksgiving. Not had a lot of time to work on this trip since I last visited TravelGumbo, but some progress to report. I have a firm ticket reservation for Manchester, returning from Paris, though a few days off the dates we talked about. But 29 days in Europe! Whooppeee!! I have a guidebook from the Library which I'm going to go through this long weekend (one by Fodors). I think this will help. Anyone know of a good pocket size...
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Re: Idaho's Craters of the Moon National Monument

DrFumblefinger ·
Thanks for reading the piece and for your comment, GarryRF! The "Yellowstone" hot spot has migrated over the past thousands of years from eastern Oregon, across southern Idaho and now sits right under Yellowstone National Park. Actually the hot spot hasn't move at all, the earth's places move away from the hot spot, but it's just another way of thinking about it. I'd be careful about being around an active volcano but don't mind hanging around places like this or much of the Hawaiian...
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Re: Gumbo's Pic of the Day, Mar.4th 2014: Dubai Water Taxi

DrFumblefinger ·
It's a great image, Islandman! I really enjoy photos of people going about their every day lives in different locations about the world, a reminder to me how much more alike we all are than different. This photo is made more interesting by their obviously ethnic diversity -- people who have come to Dubai for a good job and to improve their lot in life. The contrast of the old wooden taxi and modern skyscrapers in the background is great!
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Re: Good news, bad news on UNESCO's world heritage

DrFumblefinger ·
I enjoy traveling to UNESCO sites because most of them are very interesting destinations. I even know of some travelers whose goal it is to see "every" UNESCO listing. Good luck to them! I really think UNESCO is doing it's job by identifying important places and encouraging their conservation. I shudder at the thought of a global UNESCO police swooping in to "defend" these sites. It's up to the countries that govern them to do so. Some do a great job; others don't. Some citizens care, others...
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Re: Wandering In and Around Split

Paul Heymont ·
Thanks for this! A real reminder of how artificial our categories (Eastern Europe, Western Europe, Mediterranean, etc.) seem when we see how much in common they share!
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Re: Gumbo's Pic of the Day: May 11, 2014: Brasov, Romania

IslandMan ·
A classic Eastern European image....good one, Andre
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Re: Krumlov Castle, Český Krumlov, Czech Republic. Where Gumbo was #68

GarryRF ·
Cesky Krumlov like many of the cities behind the old "iron Curtain" seem to be frozen in time. I'm glad I visited eastern Europe before the arrival of McRonalds appeared on street corners. The Czech Republic has produced excellent cars for 50 years but was starved of cash by Moscow for many years. But it's just now become one of the top producers in Europe.
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Re: Is it time to regulate airplane seats? Chris Elliott thinks so!

GarryRF ·
This debate seems to accept that the profit margins of Trans-Atlantic Flights are squeezed by costs outside the carriers control. The only solution they have is squeeze more seats in to control income. Last month I paid £759 ($1245) for 1 seat UK to Philadelphia - Return - with an American Airline. 7 hours in the sky. Each way. My £759 will also get me a flight to the Caribbean from the UK. 10 hours in the sky. 14 nights in a hotel. Food and drink included. And flight back. The Caribbean...
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Re: Where in the World is TravelGumbo? (#71)

Lynn Millar ·
When I first saw this I thought China or SE Asia. But the kegs are a good spot. There's grafitti too. Eastern Europe?
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Re: Where in the World is TravelGumbo? #86

Jonathan L ·
I don't know why, but I am getting an eastern Europe fell - like Prague
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Re: A Visit to Saudi Arabia: Part II

Roderick Simpson ·
Very interesting two posts. They bring back memories of visits to Dharan and the Eastern Province in the 1990s.
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Re: Poulet Frit

vivie ·
It is mostly found in eastern New Brunswick, one in almost every little town. Travel Rob was lucky, word is Caraquet location has the best chicken.
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Re: Where in the World is TravelGumbo (#84)

Paul Heymont ·
This is going to be interesting.... At 7 pm Eastern, I will post the two e-mail guesses....and tomorrow, the Reveal!
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Re: Breaded swordfish, Palermo style. Wonderful!

DrFumblefinger ·
Yes, PM, there are, especially between eastern Sicily and the Italian mainland. This serving was a little unusual in that it was very thinly cut, but of a huge piece. It was really good.
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Re: The Palouse, Cheney

DrFumblefinger ·
Nice to know Google works to our advantage sometime. The Palouse is the area of rolling farmland in southeastern Washington. Very pretty and sparsely developed country. Cheney is the name of a small town not far from Spokane which is home to Eastern Washington University. Besides education, the only other industry around town is farming.
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Re: Florida warned: take action against future flooding

GarryRF ·
Not in disagreement at all Paul. Just a mention that climate change is not all bad news. And an option to some folks that wonder where all that melted ice is going to. It's been another winter when the Jet Stream has kept the UK warm and the Eastern States frozen. So there's a lot more water to come down from the Ice Cap yet !
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Re: World's most attractive libraries

DrFumblefinger ·
A followup to attractive libraries are great bookstores. Fodors just released 16 of their favorites in the USA, which you can find here . I've visited a number of these and enjoyed them. I would like to add two other stores that I know of. 1) Univ. of Washington bookstore. While mostly a student store aimed at textbooks and supplies and such, it has an excellent collection of fiction and non-fiction as well as frequent author readings and book signings. 2) Auntie's books in Spokane,...
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Re: Poulet Frit

DrFumblefinger ·
That's a hearty man-sized serving there, Rob! Must have been a hungry day for you. But it does look delicious. I assume this is an eastern Canadian chain because I've never seen it in the western half of the country.
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Re: Best Ways To Reach Heathrow Airport Quickly In London

Dan Carter ·
I just noticed this morning in TravelGumbo News that Heathrow Express is cutting its fares because of competiton with train service that wasn't mentioned here. That's what used to be called Heathrow Connect, and is now called TfL Rail, and will soon be called the Elizabeth Line. It's only 15 minutes slower than the Express, and the price is the same as the Tube. Both of those go only to Paddington Station in London, way in the West End, but once TfL Rail is connected to the new Crossrail...
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Re: Visiting Erupting Mount Etna

rbciao ·
We were there in 2014 and it was one of the most interesting days to walk around this area. We had no idea the volcano had so many side vents. We did not purchase the guided tour on the big tire vehicle, but were very impressed, nonetheless. We stayed in Taormina for a week and took day trips to various locations in the eastern part of the island. One place we spent an afternoon was a mountain to town with my last name. It was very cool. This place does not see many travelers and everywhere...
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Re: Lunchtime in Budapest

Amateuremigrant ·
Hah ! Two summers running walking tours in Eastern Hungary put me over 100kg for the first time in my life. And it never went back down 😢
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Re: Where in the World is TravelGumbo (#134)

DrFumblefinger ·
The vegetation looks like something from the far north. Perhaps from your trip to Norway? Maybe even eastern Canada. I'm not sure.
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Re: Walking the Burgundy Canal

PortMoresby ·
I received Melinda's newsletter this afternoon (she of ILoveWalkinginFrance.com ), and she confirms what I mentioned above about the down side of trying to follow French paths. "... I backtracked and turned right, thinking that walking around an island would be fairly straightforward. That path ended soon after, at the end of the port, so I backtracked again and followed another path which would join the coastal path at the eastern side of the island. It did, but was so badly marked that I...
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Re: Georgia on my Mind

Wilbur's Travels ·
Hi Dr Fumblefinger, I hope all is well - any trips planned? I have started a new blog focusing on train travel overseas. This is mainly about my 200+ overseas journeys but also will feature other train related topical posts. I would like to pen an article for Travel Gumbo and thought about doing it on one of my Eastern European tours such as Budapest - Bucharest - Chisinau - Odessa - Sevastopol - Lviv - Kiev or Zagreb - Split - Sarajevo - Belgrade - Sofia - Veliko Tărnovo. What do you think?
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Andrew Lowen

Andrew Lowen
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Goni

Goni
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Re: Name Your Favorite Restaurants for Atmosphere, Past or Present

DrFumblefinger ·
That sounds like a great meal, PortMoresby! Thanks for sharing with us. I'm curious about the fern dish. Were they the young coiled ferns just budding from the ground (known as "fiddleheads" in eastern Canada), or were they the more mature plant? It's pretty rare for a restaurant to serve fern in my experience.
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Re: Pesuta Shipwreck, Naikoon Provincial Park, Haida-Gwaii, British Columbia

DrFumblefinger ·
The glass floats tend to wash up on the west (windward) side of the Pacific. This hike was on the leeward (eastern) side, where these floats tend not to come. But there were a gazillion trees, like these.
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Re: "Eastern Airlines" to fly again!

Paul Heymont ·
And will they have Frank Borman and the "Wings of Man" slogan, I wonder? I don't know if they'll find that name so useful...it implies a regional service when most others have shed "local" identities for names that imply bigger or more abstract, and the number of people with fond memories of Eastern (which has been gone a quarter of a century) is probably not a strong factor for them.
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Re: "Eastern Airlines" to fly again!

PortMoresby ·
Southwest has done pretty well while retaining it's regional identity. I think reviving "Eastern" would be a smart move, a reminder to some of when air travel was an adventure and something to look forward to. Maybe they'll even revive some of the things that made it so - room for legs, free checked bags and food fit to eat. And maybe I'm dreaming.
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Re: A visit to Saudi Arabia: Part I

DrFumblefinger ·
Wow! Thanks for this fascinating contribution, Lestertheinvestor. I was exhausted just from reading the directions for applying for the visa. It is quite obvious that Saudi Arabia doesn't want infidels visiting them. A few questions you might know the answer to: 1) Is the process stream-lined for a Muslim wanting to go to Mecca, and what kind of proof do they need to have that they're a Muslim? 2) Do you have any rough idea how many hours you spent on this process? Ball-park guess would do.
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Re: A visit to Saudi Arabia: Part I

Lestertheinvestor ·
1) The process is easier for a Muslim who is going on a hajj. However, unless you are native born, you must present a document from the Imam of your mosque documenting your status as a Muslim in good standing. For a Caucasian woman who is a converted Muslim, you must still get permission from your husband or a male relative, along with the letter from the mosque to allow you to make the hajj. 2) Between my wife and I (she actually presented our documents each time to the consulate in Los...
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Re: A visit to Saudi Arabia: Part I

Travel Luver ·
What a bureaucratic nightmare! I wonder if there are countries that make it harder to visit than this one?
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Re: A visit to Saudi Arabia: Part I

Lestertheinvestor ·
Originally Posted by Travel Luver: What a bureaucratic nightmare! I wonder if there are countries that make it harder to visit than this one? My wife and I have visited 119 countries, with China, Bhutan and Saudi Arabia the most challenging to enter.
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Re: A visit to Saudi Arabia: Part I

HistoryDigger ·
My husband and I were invited to live there for two years while he did a medical fellowship in genetics. The challenge for me was that I am a very independent traveler, and I could not imagine how I would deal with the restrictions on women. In the end, those restrictions influenced our decision to go to Germany for two years instead. However, after having seen your photos, I am curious to see more. I regret that I do not know this part of the world.
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Re: Finding Reiner #6: Frozen Grave

Travel Rob ·
Very powerful. I keep thinking of that local man's mothers story and it's similar to stories I've heard from some ,in the the WW2 generation living in Eastern Europe ,about the Russian Army of WW2.
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Re: Chinese Airlines Looking for Bigger Share of Int'l Service

PortMoresby ·
I have, indeed, noticed that Chinese airlines (China Eastern, China Southern) that I've used domestically or from other Asian countries to China, appearing on fare searches lately, usually with very competitive fares. I intend to pay closer attention. Thanks P.
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Re: Where in the World is TravelGumbo? (#63)

Lynn Millar ·
I see hands on a baseball bat and that the stands are for a person to climb and put their hand next. If that's true, then it seems too humorous for Eastern Europe. Maybe Cuba? Also, if it's to be climbed the fact that there aren't several handrails or safety devices, seems to mean it's not in the US. - Lynn
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Re: Your opinion of Bulgaria

DrFumblefinger ·
I also have to admit that I don't know much about Bulgaria, although more and more I've been thinking about visiting eastern Europe. I look forward to learning more about it from your future posts! Thanks!
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Re: Canada's Westjet enters Trans-Atlantic market

DrFumblefinger ·
Westjet has been promoting this to its frequent flyer members (like yours truly) for months now. They have extensive routes in North America, including Mexico and the Caribbean, but this is a big change in their business model. I'm not sure if this will work well, though. Westjet only flies Boeing 737s (much like Southwest, for example). That transatlantic journey is a long and uncomfortable one to make in a single aisle aircraft. In contrast, Air Canada, the other major Canadian airline,...
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Re: Walking in England: The Kennet & Avon Canal

Paul Heymont ·
I've enjoyed canoeing and walking on some of our eastern canals (Chesapeake and Potomac, Delaware and a couple of others) but unfortunately we don't seem to have kept serious stretches in shape for either shipping or recreation as has happened in England and France...too bad for us! Looks like a lovely walk...
 
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