Tag Archives: urban

Perfect weather, fabulous food, and historical and natural sites galore: Crete was an absolute joy to visit. I was staying in the hills outside the island’s capital of Heraklion/Iraklio, and had no difficulty filling my days with fascinating day trips (see: Weekly Wanders Crete). Towards the end of my week, I decided to explore closer […]

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One of the things I love about travel is the opportunity to get new perspectives on familiar places. On several occasions over the course of my life, I have lived, studied, and worked in and around Vancouver – that densely populated metropolis on Canada’s west coast. But that was a long time ago, and on […]

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The little city of Santander with its sheltered natural harbour on the Bay of Biscay has a long and rich history. It is thought to have been the location of the 26 BC Roman port: Portus Victoriae Iuliobrigensium, but no definitive archaeological evidence has been found. The first documentary mention of the settlement was in 1068, although […]

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Muscat, the Sultanate of Oman’s capital and most populous city, has been known as an important trading seaport since at least the early 1st century. Hemmed in by the rugged Western Al Hajar Mountains, the sheltered port city lies on the Arabian Sea along the Gulf of Oman, where the waters lead east to the […]

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Porto, Portugal’s second largest city, sits nestled into the granite hills either side of the Douro River. One of Europe’s oldest centres, the early Proto-Celtic settlement of Cale dates back to at least 300 BC. It was conquered by the Romans around 136 BC. and served as the outpost city of Portus Cale (Port of […]

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