Get travel inspo in your inbox every week. Discover wonderful places, delightful hotels, history and cultural experiences at home (USA) and abroad. Everything you see and read is 100% original by Paul, photographer and FAA-certified licensed drone pilot, and Marilee, the voice and writer behind Spotlight Sojourns.
✨Endless worlds within 4 walls
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Libraries and bookstores are passports to endless worlds within four walls. So there’s always room in our tote bag or suitcase to bring home a special book or two. At home and abroad, Paul and I find joy visiting local libraries and bookstores, such as the beautiful El Ateneo Grand Splendid in Buenos Aires, Argentina pictured above. Now is a great time to find some fresh bookish joy. Because National Library Week started April 19th and ends with Independent Bookstore Day on April 25th. Following are four true-life tales recently read and thoroughly enjoyed. Plus one brand-new take on an ancient myth we just ordered on its publication date, April 21st! 1) On the Hippie Trail: Istanbul to Kathmandu and the Making of a Travel Writer by Rick Steves: Trekking through Asia in the 1970s, what could possibly go wrong? Packed with his original journal entries, photos, and mementos, Steves recounts the transformational journey during his early 20s. 2) Free to Ride: Heartbreak, Courage, and the 20,000-Mile Motorcycle Journey That Changed My Life by Noraly Schoenmaker: A bold Dutch woman embarks on an audacious solo odyssey across Asia and India. 3) Adventures in the Louvre: How to Fall in Love with the World’s Greatest Museum by Elaine Sciolino: Dreaming of Paris? This internationally acclaimed, award-winning book is a must if you adore art, art history, French heritage, or Parisian travel. 4) The Size of the World: Once Around the World Without Leaving the Ground by Jeff Greenwald: How do you travel around the globe without taking an airplane? Jeff Greenwald tells you how in his legendary global circumnavigation. 5) Realm of Shadows by Rektok Ross. An of-the-moment retelling of Hades and Persephone by our dear friend and best-selling young-adult author Liani Kotcher. You can request your local library to purchase it, read it free on Kindle Unlimited, or order the high-quality paperback. Reader, here’s to finding joy and thrilling reads this week. Until next time, Travel on, sparkle on, meaningfully✨ Marilee + Paul Kostadimas PS: Do you know friends or family who’d like a little inspo in their box? Please forward this email. They can subscribe by clicking the button below:
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Slow travel stories and hidden gems with the Hidden Gemologists®
Get travel inspo in your inbox every week. Discover wonderful places, delightful hotels, history and cultural experiences at home (USA) and abroad. Everything you see and read is 100% original by Paul, photographer and FAA-certified licensed drone pilot, and Marilee, the voice and writer behind Spotlight Sojourns.
Few would place the humble, hard-working city of Arta, Epirus, on their must-visit list in Greece. Few, that is, except you. Specifically, you came to Arta for its famous stone arch bridge. So, promptly upon arrival in town, you head straight to the Arachthos River in anticipation. First built during the Roman Empire, re-built over millennia by the Byzantine and Ottoman rulers, the Bridge of Arta holds a place in folklore and ballads. Assuredly, this long and lovely stone arch bridge does not...
As you traverse narrow mountain roads enroute to Greece’s mightiest gorge, historic stone bridges appear and disappear enchantingly. Hand-built centuries ago by master masons of Epirus, these stone arch bridges fill the Pindos Mountains with purposeful grace and rugged beauty. It seems as if you’re in a fairytale come true. And the bridges are characters in their own right. The first bridge you encounter is the Kokkorou Bridge, the stern guardian of Zagori. Its high single arch spans the...
Scenically surrounded by mountains and strategically set on a lake, the Epirus capital of Ioannina commands an urban setting unique in Greece. Ioannina’s lovely promenade along Lake Pamvotis draws locals and visitors alike by day and by night. Water taxis shuttle constantly between Ioannina’s dock and its small island in Lake Pamvotida. The locals call their island To Nisi, which simply means “the island.” To Nisi is inhabited, one of only two inhabited lake islands in all of Greece. The...