by Minter Dial | Apr 18, 2009 | Sports, Travel
For our six-day visit to Marrakesh (or Marrakech if you prefer) en famille, we stayed at the not-even-opened Beldi Country Club Hotel (+212 (0)624-38-3950), on the route to Amizmiz, in Chérifia just 6 kilometres outside of Marrakesh. Founded by Jean-Dominique...
by Minter Dial | Mar 21, 2009 | Travel
My sharp-witted friend, David (arigato gozaimasu), sent me this stunning news: you can buy this 30-room castle, plus several other buildings and 15,000 square meters of surrounding land for just over 1.1 million euros. Here is the story. The château in question is the...
by Minter Dial | Jan 3, 2009 | Travel, WWII
Having boarded a 6 a.m. flight in Guam, we arrived 3 1/2 hours later in Manila at 7:30 a.m., and headed straight north by car toward Banaue, to see the beautiful Ifugao rice terraces (acclaimed UNESCO historical site since 1995). The drive, as it turned out, was 10...
by Minter Dial | Dec 29, 2008 | Sports, Travel
A historical landmark built in 1912, the 5***** Manila Hotel is a “venue for big events and grand aspirations” as is emblazoned all over the place, including in each room over the television. As for our two nights, just before Christmas, it was not exactly...
by Minter Dial | Mar 1, 2008 | Travel
Culinary delights in Barcelona Barcelona is wondrous city offering an architectural feast at every corner, with a mixture of buildings dating back to the Roman times (down in the Gothic part of town) all the way through to contemporary masterpieces (Modernisme Route...