In two prior posts, I described our thrilling shopping adventures at the Grand Bazaar and the Spice Bazaar in Istanbul’s Sultanahmet district. Yet, the market that we fell in love with the most was located away from the tourist hordes—on the Asian side of the city. It’s hard to characterize […]
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In the last post, I described the fun of visiting and bargaining at the Grand Bazaar. And although my parents and I enjoyed the craziness of this behemoth ancient market, we found other markets in Istanbul that we loved even more. Several days before visiting the Grand Bazaar, we spent […]
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I love markets in Asia. Bright colors, pungent smells, cacophonic sounds—visiting a market in Asia is always a chaotic and exotic experience. Every time we come to Asia, I get excited about getting lost in the labyrinths of markets and discovering local crafts, delicious and cheap food, and friendly vendors. […]
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Tobacco and sugar. Two exports—in addition to rum—that Cuba is most known for. After spending three days in the tobacco-growing Piñar del Rio province, which included visiting a tobacco farm and learning about the cigar-making process in Viñales, we headed to the region that was once dominated by sugar production. […]
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In previous posts, Julia already described all the bouncing joy, painful blisters, and occasional aggressive biting of our horseback riding adventures in Viñales. While Julia’s most powerful impressions in Viñales happened on horseback, I found myself awed in the most unexpected of places – a tobacco farm. We arrived in […]
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