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Barcelona Travel Guide

Barcelona contains both the authentically historic and the wildly bizarre. From the tree-lined Las Ramblas to the narrow alleys of Barri Gòtic; from the beachside nightclubs to the city's dozens of sacred churches and cathedrals, this city by the sea seems to attract all types: the family, the adventurer, the couple, the backpacker, the culture lover -- and more -- with an almost overwhelming variety of things to do. You could stay for a few ... continue»

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Mecca, the Holiest City in Islam

Pilgrims circumambulating the Kaaba during the Hajj in Mecca
Photo by: Muhammad Mahdi Karim, Creative Commons

Mecca, also called Makkah, is a city in Saudi Arab. It is the holiest city in Islam, which is considered to be very sacred to Muslims faith. There is a saying that goes: “anyone who is born a Muslim, must visit Mecca at least once to wash his or her sins”. It is very interesting to know that almost two to three million Hajjis (pilgrimage to Mecca) pay visit to this city every year. Mecca today is facing both good and bad times. Good times because its popularity and bad times because of infrastructure problem.

Mecca is the home of Masjid Al Haram. Initially, it was a place for trading during the 7th century. Also, till 1924, it was governed by the local sheriffs’. After that, it saw a lot of modernization in its size and structure. Today, it is ruled by the local municipality of Mecca with a Mayor who is directly appointed by the Government of Saudi Arabia.

The history of Mecca takes one back to 2000 BC, with some people believing that Abraham built the Kaaba with his son, Ishmael. Over the years, this place had almost three hundred and sixty idols. Mecca today has the biggest Mosque in the world. Everyday, daily prayers are offered in it and another step is being taken by the government to renovate the entire place so that it can accommodate 900000 people at a time.

By Saudi law, non-Muslims are forbidden to enter Mecca, which is strictly enforced by the government.

Banaue Rice Terraces in Ifugao

Clear and Sharp View of Banaue Rice Terraces
Photo by: jonrawlinson, Creative Commons

The Banaue Rice Terraces of the Philippines have been said to be like the 8th wonder of the world. They were carved from the hillside by the tribes people of Ifugao about 2,000-3,000 years ago. The tribes people did this with their bare hands and crude implements, without using machinery to level the steps where they plant their rice, which is what makes this wonder so attractive, aside from the fact that the rice terraces are still used today.

This is considered to be one of the greatest engineering feats of mankind, because if each one were connected end to end, then they would reach halfway across the globe or be 10 times as long as the Great Wall of China. It was not until only 13 years ago (1995) that the Banaue Rice Terraces were declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO.

The rice terraces are like stepping stones stretching towards the sky, where some of them reach almost 5,000 feet in altitude and cover about 4,000 square miles of land. They are now beginning to show signs that they are eroding, and some of them need maintenance, while the Ifugaos’ new generation is migrating to nearby cities in search of better opportunities.

Even though it is about 8 or 9 hours from Manila in a car, the Banaue rice terraces are known to be one of the most spectacular places to see in the Philippines. They have transformed the Cordillera mountains of barren stone into ledges that are fit to grow rice.

Pictures & Photos

Banaue Rice Terraces During a Cloudy Day
Photo by: MVI

Panorama View of Banaue Rice Terraces
Photo by: Wikipedia

Banaue Rice Terraces With House and Green Spot and Rice
Photo by: kinobiel

Wet Water at Banaue Rice Terraces
Photo by: Kinobiel

Banaue Rice Terraces Planting Season
Photo by: Kinobiel

Foggy Day at Banaue Rice Terraces
Photo by: mikeyOcampo

Bulol (Ifugao Rice God) State at Banaue Rice Terraces
Photo by: MVI

Banaue Rice Terraces Black and White
Photo by: IRRIImages

Clear Day at Banaue Rice Terraces
Photo by: IRRI Images

Golden Temple of Amritsar

View of the Golden Temple in India
Photo by: appaji, Creative Commons

The Golden Temple in India, which is often called the “Darbar Sahib or Harmandar Sahib” by the Indians, is one of the oldest places of worship for the ‘Sikhs’ and is located in Amritsar, Punjab. It is considered one of the holiest, blessed and sacrosanct places in India. It is a symbol of both beauty and peace. The temple is surrounded by a small man-made lake which has tons and tones of fishes in it. This lake is supposed to have holy water. The temple can be entered from four different sides and thus symbolizes openness, acceptance. This concept is based on the old tents which were open from all four sides, welcoming travelers from all directions.

The Golden Temple has three holy trees. There is also a small Sikh Museum near the Ghanta Ghar in Amritsar which is very rich in information, especially for the first time visitors. The entire top of the temple is made of pure gold and thus adds a lot of pride and beauty to the entire temple.

During the earlier days, this place was a huge lake surrounded by a thin line of forests. It is also said that Buddha journeyed to find out the real meaning of life spent some considerable time in this place. The first guru of the Sikh community called the Guru Nank also used to meditate in this peaceful place and years after he passed away, many of his disciples kept coming back to the site and then it finally became a sacred place. It was during the Fifth Guru, Arjana when the Temple was finally built 1604. It was Guru Arjan who installed the “Guru Granth Sahib” in the temple and appointed the first reader in August 1604. The temples architecture is that of both Hindu and Muslims. On many occasions, it was destroyed by a certain set of community and rebuilt by the Sikhs.

Moscow Kremlin

Moskva River & The Kremlin Castle in Moscow, Russia
Photo by: olpol, Creative Commons

Moscow Kremlin is also called the Kremlin and is a castle that is situated at the heart of Moscow. It has four palaces and four cathedrals. The site is the official residence of the president of Russia.

The great Kremlin Palace is one of the biggest castle in the entire Russia. The palace has a very stunning looking combination of yellow and white with a green roof top. The golden color adds a touch of wealth to the entire palace. The palace was made in the year 1837 by King Nicholas I. The palace was initially built in the year 1462 during the rule of Ivan the Terrible. However, it was rebuilt because a lot of damage was done to the place during war times. During the 18th century, the construction came to a halt as the entire Russian capital moved it the north city. It was in 1740’s when an Italian architecture was hired by queen Elizabeth and once again the construction began.

The Palace was built to extend the Russian autocracy. The best architects were hired to perform the splendid job and finally they did come up with a fine piece of art. The dimensions of the palace are massive. The total length of the palace is 125 meters and the width is 47  meters and thus covers a total of 25,000 sq. meters. The whole building has almost 9 churches from the 14th, 15th and 16th century and has more than 700 rooms in it. The west side of the palace was for the Royal family. Just like many other palaces, this one is also off limits to public viewing.

Brazilian Carnival in Rio

Isabel, a dancer from the Brazilian Carnival in Rio, Brazil
Photo by: sfmission.com, Creative Commons

The Brazilian Carnival in Rio, Brazil is an annual festival that takes place four days before Ash Wednesday, which is described as the beginning of the 40 days fast, called lent. During the days of fasting, some Roman Catholics and Christians do not consume meat. The reason of the carnival is to bid farewell to some pleasures of the flesh and it is dedicated to Christ’s death.

The carnival in Brazil is a little different from its counterparts in Europe because it has a mixture of the Europe and African fundamentals. So much so that even the music, rhythm, and costume, changes a bit from one region of Brazil to the other. A fine example to quote the differences is seen in the southeast part of the cities, where the parade of the carnival is usually led by the Samba schools and only Samba school affiliates’ participate in it whereas in smaller towns, there is no public to view the carnival and hence, the carnival is organized in clubs. In the North east section of Brazil, even the common public is allowed to dance and take part in the parade and enjoy it to the fullest as they are made to feel a part of the big show. The Carnival is all about having fun, dancing to the catchy rhythm and wearing colorful clothes.

The modern carnival originated in the year 1641, it was actually a mimicry of the European style of having fun. However, over the years, it refrained itself and took inputs from different cultures like Europe, North America and Africa.

Ladakh and Its Mountains

                      Fifty beaches, wild, unspoilt & so near -your perfect weekend break!

Ladakh, also called the Land of the High Passes, is part of the Indian State of Jammu and Kashmir. It lies in between two world’s greatest mountain ranges, i.e. the Himalayan Ranges and the Karakorum Ranges. The people who stay there are migrants of Indo Aryans and Tibetan civilization.

The Ladakh region is very thinly populated. This place is said to be the young land and only formed a few million years ago. Ladakh has an altitude of 9000 feet at Kargil and 21,170 feet at Saser Kanri. The temperature in winter reaches minus 22 degree Celsius and during summers, can go up to 20 plus. Leh and Ladakh have been said to be the only places where you can have a sun stroke as well as frostbit at the same time.

Water in such places is always scarce because the place hardly receives any rain. Ladakh was once covered by a Lake. The main source of water here is the melted water from the snow which is carried down by smaller streams and thus helps in irrigation. The farmers usually pray that the rains should not destroy their crops and the sun should melt the snow which should be the real source of irrigation. It is interesting and shocking to know that the place does not receive any water from the rain for almost 300 days in one year.

There are beautiful mountains all over Ladakh and it’s worth visiting if you’re into mountain activities. Some of the adventures that tourists can indulge into are mountain climbing, cycling, Jeep and yak safari, trekking etc. Also, there are a lot of monateries in Ladakh that are worth visiting.