Grand Escapades
Travel Photography & Travel Experiences of Africa, South America, the Middle-East & Asia
Wadi Bani Khaled
“Wadi” means “Valley”, and there are dozens of those valleys carved into the mountains, some offering emerald water pools that invite for a quick refreshing dip into the water, some filled with Falaj and date plantations. You surely can spend weeks visiting the numerous Wadis throughout Oman.
Wahiba Sands, Oman
The Shaqyriah, also called Wahiba Sands, are in my opinion THE highlight of any trip to Oman! There are many deserts on this planet, but the Wahiba Sands are surely what comes closest to what one has in mind when imagining endless sand dunes of various shapes, heights and colors. It simply goes as far as the eye can see, and beyond… You come here to experience and enjoy this endless immensity, the total quietness of the desert, with only the wind on the dunes as a background music, and marvel at the sheer beauty of this so hostile nature. Continue Reading →
Nizwa Fort, Oman
Nizwa is the second largest city in Oman and a major tourist hub. It is basically on everyone’s route when visiting Oman, and it will most likely be your base for various ventures:
Al Hamra Abandoned Village, Tanuf Castle Ruins, Birkat Al Mouz Ruins… There are numerous “abandoned villages” throughout Oman, and you can spend a whole trip there only visiting those. You will find quite a few in your travel guide, some highly recommended. These old traditional villages were simply abandoned when newer cities were built from scratch over the last 3 to 4 decades, offering modern housing to the Omani population. If they indeed make for an interesting glimpse of what life might have been only one to two generations back, all in all they largely look the same. Far more interesting and still completely below the radars of most visitors, as it only opened shortly before the beginning of the Covid-19 pandemic, is Harat Al Bilad Heritage Village, about 20 km south of Nizwa (22°47’27.924″ N 57°36’7.218″ E). Continue Reading →
I experienced twice the Friday Goat Market in Nizwa: in 2014 and in 2022. This is a unique experience, and one of the most vibrant markets I have ever experienced in all my trips (a few years back, I ranked it as second best market I have ever attended in Africa, Asia, the Middle East or South America…) Continue Reading →
“Balcony Walk” along Wadi Ghul, Oman’s Grand Canyon, Sultanat of Oman
Visiting the mountain ranges of Jebel Shams & Jebel Al Akhdar is clearly one of the highlights of Oman, and one that deserves 2 to 3 days at least. Of course, you can stay much longer there, especially if you are into serious hiking: possibilities are numerous, for beginners and seasoned trekkers alike. Continue Reading →
Forallac and Santa Cristina d’Aro
We spent 4 weeks in Catalonia and the Costa Brava, Spain, in August 2021. This was our first trip abroad since the outbreak of the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic, and our first trip abroad since the twins had been born.
The Costa Brava and Catalonia were definitely not high on my travel list, especially in the summer and the heart of the tourist season. Nonetheless, I was very pleased to discover that it was indeed quite easy to partly escape the crowds, and that some parts at least were not completely built and turned into mass-tourism hotspots: beautiful Medieval Villages, a Wild Coast that really deserves its name, and of course Barcelona, which I discovered for the first time.
Of course, with 3 kids between 16 months and 3 years old, we were somewhat limited in our activities, and with photography – So here you go: my first Photo Essay solely shot with an iPhone 11.
Ksar of Ait Ben Haddou
Itinerary And Time Of The Visit
We traveled 10 days in the beginning of November 2019, and drove a loop starting from Marrakech to Essaouira, Taroudant, Agdz in the Draa Valley, Ait Ben Haddou (including the spectacular drive to Telouet), and back to Marrakech. This is only a small part of this huge and very diverse country, but it was an amazing road-trip nonetheless, that really put Morocco high on our list for the near future. Continue Reading →
Djebel Kissane near Adgz, Draa Valley
Type Of Travel
Morocco was our fourth trip with an infant (at the time of travel, Jules was 16 months old), and given the overall price level & our need to rest and relax, we decided to splurge a little and actually upgraded our standards of travel, going to a mid-range (upper mid-range ?) type of travel: Continue Reading →
The Fortified Walls of Taroudant
Morocco took me by surprise, honestly! It had never been somehow on my radar in the past, and I didn’t really know what to expect – Though I must admit I was surely biased about a country I considered mass-tourism orientated.
True, you will not be the only tourist in Marrakech… By far not! But as soon as we left Marrakech, we could enjoy a beautiful country with most of the time surprisingly few other foreign visitors, even though we covered a very classic route: Marrakech – Essaouira – Taroudant – Agdz in the Draa Valley – Ait Ben Haddou – Marrakech. Continue Reading →