Places

by

Are you a Souveniristic Tourist? Take the test to find out.

                                                                 

Take this quick test to assess just how much of a  souvenir freak you are & if there is any hope left to become normal.

1. Do you collect  magnets of every hill & dale you visit in each country? Yes/No  

 2. Do you collect souvenir spoons as a keepsake of countries you visit?  Yes/No

 3. Do you buy postcards to send friends & family but…like it way too much & keep it for yourself ?  Yes/No

 4. Do you collect foreign coins & postage stamps from every place &  have a neat pile up you know not where to  keep?  Yes/No

 5. Do you bring back a slice of sunshine via a photograph, or a bottle of  sand, or collect shells & pebbles that have that amazzzzing shade you won’t find elsewhere?  Yes/No

 6. Have other people seen your ailment & started bringing back magnets & spoons as gifts for you from their travels?  Yes/No

7. As you flip through books do you discover old tram, train, subway, concert tickets from Godknowswhere that serve as bookmarks? Yes/No

8. Do you preserve museum flyers, local maps as a token of sentiment? Yes/No  

9. Do you have a pile up of mementos of every shape, colour & imagination? Yes/No         

             

10. Do you write blog posts about souvenirs? Yes/No                                                       

 

 

 

Score
Upto 3 Yes  –  You are a happily balanced tourist
Upto 6 Yes  –  You are a tourist tugging away from the rope of normalcy that is trying to detain you
Upto 8 Yes  –  You are a tourist who has broken free from the rope. In  other words you are on the border of souveniritis
All 10 Yes    –  You are a tourist with a case of extreme souveniritis-outta-balancia. Get well soon!

     

by

Fotomagically Geneva

Out of Switzerland’s treasure trove emerges Geneva.

The beauty of this city is best captured around  Lake Léman or Lake Geneva, with its landmark Jet d’eau – the world’s tallest water fountain. Lake Geneva is supposed to be one of the largest lakes in Western Europe & is located at the foot of the beautiful Alps. 

Just walking  around the lake  or sitting at a lake facing café is awesome as also hopping onto a boat for a cruise around the lake. The view of a city blended in perfect harmony against nature’s back drop is absobloominlutely stunning.  

 

 

by

The Roman Baths

Bath is a city in the Somerset County of England. A World Heritage Site, this ancient city is famous for its Roman Baths. Below are photos of  the Roman Bath from a bygone era. The complex also included the temple of Sulis Minerva; spooky curses that were written have been recovered from the Spring as the photos will tell.

To share an interesting quote from the Wiki article on  Bath , “Archaeological evidence shows that the site of the Roman Baths’ main spring was treated as a shrine by the Iron Age Britons, and was dedicated to the goddess Sulis, whom the Romans identified with Minerva; however, the name Sulis continued to be used after the Roman invasion, leading to the town’s Roman name of Aquae Sulis (literally, “the waters of Sulis”).”

Let the photos do the talking…

 

by

Happy Black Birds of the Alps

They were sweet black birds with yellow beaks against a sheer  snowy white backdrop. I was seeing these birds for the first time & they were close in appearance to crows, but for their beaks. Found them interesting, as they calmly beheld tourists in the midst of the biting cold. And they had no problem being photographed either.    

A bit of Google search indicates they are officially the  Alpine Chough & are also known as the Yellow-Billed Chough.

Presenting the Happy Choughs of Jungfraujoch…

 

 

 

by

Isle Rügen

Rügen is Germany’s largest island located in the Baltic Sea.

Placid & picturesque with cobbled roads, the azure sea, chalky cliffs & brilliant scenery…

Rügen & Stralsund, which is not too far away make for a most memorable visit. Photos are from both places –

Sunlight on the Church at 9PM…

by

Ranganathittu Bird Sanctuary

Ranganathittu Bird Sanctuary – situated fairly close to Mysore in Karnataka state, is a bunch of small islets on the River Cauvery. Every year the sanctuary becomes an active nesting ground for thousands of migratory birds from various parts of the world. Photos from my visit.