Azerbaijan
by Alex Robertson Textor (RSS feed) (2 months ago)
Alex Robertson Textor
Launched in 1956, Eurovision is a Europe-wide music competition held every May under the auspices of the European Broadcasting Union (EBU). Participating countries select their representative songs over the course of the preceding winter and spring. ...
by David Farley (RSS feed) (3 months ago)
The unibrow is the face of travel.
Let me explain. I recently took a trip to Azerbaijan. I strolled the streets of Baku, which are flanked by plus-sized Beaux Arts palaces, the ground floors of which usually house a designer shop. I ate enough grilled meat to keep a ...
by David Farley (RSS feed) (4 months ago)
In September 2010, on the banks of the Caspian Sea, a plus-sized Azerbaijani flag was raised on a very tall flagpole. With an international audience looking on, Azerbaijani officials proudly made a proclamation: that in Baku, the capital of the country, the world's ...
by David Farley (RSS feed) (4 months ago)
I first encountered Juma outside the castle in the Azerbaijani town of Sheki, a town of 60,000 people about a four-hour drive from the capital, Baku. Juma had planted himself just outside the castle gates. I didn't realize it at the time but he was waiting for me. He was ...
by Alex Robertson Textor (RSS feed) (7 months ago)
I traveled to Beirut earlier this year with bmi (British Midland International), the East Midlands-based airline partially absorbed into British Airways in the spring. My Beirut trip was meant to be the third installment in an ongoing series called "Far Europe and ...
by Jessica Marati (RSS feed) (1 year ago)
Alternately called the Paris of the East and the Next Dubai, Baku, the capital of Azerbaijan, is poised to become the Middle East's next big luxury travel destination.
Once the busiest harbor on the ancient Silk Road, Baku is the largest city on the Caspian Sea and in ...
by Alex Robertson Textor (RSS feed) (1 year ago)
Far Europe and Beyond, a Gadling series in partnership with bmi (British Midland International) launches today.
Europe's eastern borders cannot be defined simply. The western, northern, and southern perimeters are easy: The Atlantic, the Arctic, and the Mediterranean ...
by Meg Nesterov (RSS feed) (1 year ago)
We live in an increasingly borderless world and we have access to many countries that were closed (or non-existent) 20 years ago. As reported earlier this week, Americans are especially lucky with access to 169 countries visa free. Still, there are still many countries that ...
by Alex Robertson Textor (RSS feed) (2 years ago)
Lake Ohrid, Macedonia.
Yesterday, I wrote about the fact that European passport stamps have become harder and harder to get. The expansion of the Schengen zone has reduced the number of times tourists are compelled to show their passports to immigration officials. For ...
by Meg Nesterov (RSS feed) (2 years ago)
This year is the 20th anniversary of the fall of the Soviet Union and 21 years since the reunification of Germany. While citizens of the USSR and GDR were unable to travel abroad and restricted in domestic travel, foreign travelers were permitted under a controlled ...
by Chris Owen (RSS feed) (2 years ago)
UPDATE: Less than a month ago we told you about the cruise line crew accused of smuggling drugs into the Port of Baltimore. Now we have learned that authorities found more drugs on the same ship.
When U.S. Customs and Border Protection agents boarded Royal Caribbean ...
by Kraig Becker (RSS feed) (2 years ago)
A few years back there was an organized effort to select a New Seven Wonders of the World, which resulted in a list of seven amazing places that joined the Great Pyramids on a modern list of spectacular destinations. Now, a similar effort is being made to select a New Seven ...
by Alex Robertson Textor (RSS feed) (2 years ago)
Prior to mid-October, as Andrew Mueller notes in today's Monocolumn, visitors entering Azerbaijan without visas at capital Baku's Heydar Aliyev Airport had to engage in a bizarre hop from booth to booth to obtain their visas. First, they had to stand in a line to get a ...
by Alex Robertson Textor (RSS feed) (3 years ago)
Yesterday, Latvian airline AirBaltic launched two new routes: Riga-Madrid and Riga-Beirut.
Riga-based AirBaltic is an airline to watch. Little known in North America, the airline is notable for its low starting fares and the inclusion of most of Europe's most popular ...
by Jamie Rhein (RSS feed) (3 years ago)
When I saw this photo last week while looking for Santas from around the world, I knew I'd found today's Photo of the Day. Although this fellow appears among the other Santas, here he is again-- center stage.
The cultural mix of this Santa shot is superb. Taken by ...
by Jamie Rhein (RSS feed) (3 years ago)
Last Saturday night, Times Square was literally a Santa free for all. I first noticed the Santa madness as I approached from the direction of the Empire State Building while walking along Broadway. Along the way, a group of five Santas passed me. Then another group of ...
by Sean McLachlan (RSS feed) (3 years ago)
Going to a far-flung destination and want to connect with the people and see something special? One easy way is through local and national holidays. These are often unique to a particular country and provide insights into its culture and history. But it can often be hard to ...
by Aaron Hotfelder (RSS feed) (5 years ago)
Smokers in New York already face some of the highest prices for cigarettes in the country. But last Wednesday, the New York legislature approved a $1.25 tax hike on cigarettes, meaning that taxes alone on a pack in New York are a whopping $4.25, not including a roughly 8% ...
by Neil Woodburn (RSS feed) (5 years ago)
If you've ever traveled to a third world country and fell in love with its people, you know that feeling of guilt that inevitably arises when you realize just how difficult life can be for those less privileged than you.
Most travelers caught up in this epiphany often ...
by Neil Woodburn (RSS feed) (5 years ago)
There is nothing quite like a Russian outdoor market.
Imagine a place where produce and goods from the largest country in the world come together in a bounty of pleasure. Throw in tastiness from the former soviet republics in Central Asia and the Caucuses, and you've got a ...
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