London happens to make an excellent escape for spring . When spring comes, people hurry to wear summer clothes, which always looks really extreme to my eyes. It reminded me of Gothenburg in many ways. People seem to appreciate every sunny day. This time I went to explore London’s areas that I hadn’t visited before, and experience more of its …
A week in Baku – the city center and interesting stories
As I have written in the , I spent a week in Baku upon invitation from the NATO International School of Azerbaijan. We stayed in the suburb of Shikhov, close to the Caspian sea. Since it’s low season, there were almost no other guests. The hotel is far away from the city center. Although it provides free shuttle services to …
A week in Baku – some general facts and a walk in the Old City
I finally found a way to visit Baku (Azerbaijan) – just one day before the application deadline, I noticed that there is an interesting conference on the European Neighbourhood Policy and Eastern Partnership. I had several friends from Azerbaijan when I studied at CEU, so I had heard lots of stories about the country. But visiting there is not so …
Round two-layer church in Oldenburg
This church was built in a classicist style, but appeared too modest for the local population’s taste. So the inside, a circle symbolizing perfection, remained, but a new neogothic facade was built around the original building.
Impressions from the May Day gig in Vilnius
Many Lithuanians will tell you that it is not customary to celebrate the International Workers’ Day here, because it brings back bad memories to many. Several important holidays that celebrate emancipation were twisted in the USSR. Women were officially liberated, so the authorities decided that there is no point to demonstrate for women’s rights on the International Women’s Day, it …
Malta – for perfect vacations
Malta has long been my priority destination. It is logically a perfect place for vacations – it has the sea, plenty of sun, and an English-speaking population. The few days I spent there confirmed every expectation that I had. Malta is easy to navigate, because everyone from the age 10 to 100 speaks English, it is culturally interesting and has …
Taking the time machine in Meah Shearim
The Meah Shearim neighborhood in Jerusalem is considered to be one of the must-see places in order to get the full picture of the multicultural landscape of the city. Yet going there needs preparations: first of all, one must be “modestly dressed”, moreover, it is good to know at least a few basic things about the culture in this neighborhood.
Wine flows on top of battlefields
When, due to EU laws, some countries had to stop using the term ‘champagne’ for sparkling wines produced outside of Champagne, the change was met with sarcasm and reluctance. Yet the history of Champagne and champagne is more about a local workers’ struggle against unfair trade than about French exceptionalism.
No peace for Abraham to rest
The ancient town of Hebron (West Bank) once looked very promising. Its ancient Jewish community, more or less continuously living in the city, which claims to host the tomb of Abraham (considered both the first Jew and the first Muslim in history), had many things to share with its Arab neighbors. For example, one prayer house, built by Herod, used …
Tartu: small but dynamic
It’s a bit more than an hour since I returned from a lovely trip to Estonia, and I want to start from the freshest impressions. Those come from Tartu, the second largest city in Estonia. Tartu is known as a student city with a laid-back character. Everything is more or less within a walking distance, so Tartu people consider everything …
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